


A Burning Orchard

by DorisNancyGrey



Series: A Man is What He Hides [2]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: A/B/O, Alpha Steve, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Angst, Animalistic, BAMF Danny "Danno" Williams, Biting, Bottom Danny "Danno" Williams, Descriptions of horrific crimes, Feral Behavior, Government Experimentation, Graphic Crime Scenes, Hurt Danny "Danno" Williams, Hurt Steve McGarrett, Hurt/Comfort, Killing fields, Knotting, M/M, Medical Torture, Mpreg, Nesting, Occult, Omega Danny, Plotty, Possessive Behavior, Possessive Steve McGarrett, Post non-con, Protective Steve McGarrett, Pups, References to Knotting, Research institute, Rough Sex, Roughness, Scenting, Serial Killer, Steve accidentally breeds Danny and has the worst possible timing, Thresh - Freeform, Trigger for miscarriage, casefic, danny isn't feminized, happy ending i swear, lil' bit dark, mcdanno, references to cannibalism, ritualistic murders, spooky story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-15
Updated: 2016-09-16
Packaged: 2018-05-14 21:26:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 23
Words: 109,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5759443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DorisNancyGrey/pseuds/DorisNancyGrey
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Alpha Steve loses control of his instincts and bond bites his "beta" partner, he and Danny have to hide the fact that they're expecting unplanned pups during a horrifically dangerous hunt for a serial killer.</p>
<p>The alpha half of Steve just wants Danny to stay at home in a nest. However, the rational half of him knows that he'd get hit with a mean right hook for even suggesting it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> **You guys really need to read my prequel, "When Office Plants Die," or this will be pretty confusing! Clink the link below to read the prequel:**
> 
> [ **When Office Plants Die** ](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5552654)
> 
> Comments are liiiiiiife :D

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to warn you all that this story turns gradually darker and darker as the plot develops.

 

When they ask Steve on day twenty-three of Alpha rehabilitation if he is a danger to himself and others, he says 'yes.'

His disdain for the matching pink scrubs worn by too many beta nurses with creepy fake smiles is only surpassed by that which he harbors for himself for what he did to Danny.

An indescribable void of guilt has festered in his chest, making his shoulders curl inward instead of stretch broadly and proudly as they once did, making his usual leonine prowl more of a reserved amble.

The videos depicting feral alphas and the pain they can cause their loved ones are outdated and accompanied by an eighties crime drama keyboard fanfare.

If he hadn’t imposed upon himself the iron fucking will to never lose control ever again, he’d be laughing at the terrible acting in videos of men, and a few women, hissing and snarling in savage rage in ‘real life situations.’

A few of the alphas are able to snort in self deprecating laughter, palming their own faces as they trade barbs like, “Looks like my ex wife right before her heat,” or, “That one guy looks more like a fat beta with a painted-on six pack than an alpha...”

The only other man that doesn’t laugh at all is a huge alpha on the opposite corner of the room. Steve casually glances away from the screen to covertly study the guy, taking in the way his hands are ringing together as he stares with dimly lit, haunted captivation.

Even with an adrenal blocker patch on his neck, or maybe even two from what Steve can see, the guy is letting off the most erratic signals and scents.

Maybe he’s a multiple offender, Steve reasons grimly and sighs. It means that the uneasy expression shadowing the guy's face is recognition of the fact that there probably won't be any more chances to get himself under control.

The issue is shrouded in politics.

The world caters to alphas, and Steve admits it's not fair, considering that only twenty five percent of society are Alphas and probably close to seventy percent are betas. 

There's another category of subgender that was discovered when of this was officially recognized by the government in the nineteen forties: omegas. 

Suddenly, it was three categories to fit into -- with new constitutional rights, and new laws; it was no longer just crazy people begging their doctors for answers.

All of the regular, average humans were known as betas, and life charged on at its old familiar pace for them. Some were jealous of course, of the alphas. 

Predisposed to take control. Strong, fast, and a wicked sense of smell that could tell them more about someone than their medical records.

From the outside looking in, Steve thinks with a sigh, being an alpha must seem pretty great. 

But the behavior of sub-gendered humans in public (either alpha or omega) has been government mandated to a degree that skims along the edge of invasion of privacy.

Steve's never met an omega before Danny, and he doesn't know anyone under the age of seventy that's ever met one either. But then again, Steve's military, and almost allof the military is comprised of alpha females and males. No omegas; the idea of an omega on the front line is something society will never acclimate to.

And if anyone in this room knew that he'd attacked an omega, they'd be beating him into the ground. 

The new generations are brought up believing that omegas are like fucking unicorns or something. Science just doesn't know enough about them, and they're running out of time trying to figure the omega brain out.

The Hawaiin Registry of Endangered Subgendered Humans (T.H.R.E.S.H.) is trying to find out why, while Alphas maintain between a quarter and a third of the population, omegas are dying out. Less and less omegas are born every year, and the government is desperate to stop it -- to maintain balance they say.

It's all about balance these days, Steve huffs to himself wryly. Alpha Rehabilitation is supposed to help him acquire "balance."

_Which hopefully equates not attacking the person he cares about most._

While most feral episodes caused by an Alphas’ fierce instinct to protect are tolerated (but not excused), multiple offenses of a combination of either sexual aggression or dominance aggression are tallied against an Alpha until ultimately, they are forced to undergo a lobotomy or castration.

Three strikes and you're out.

Thankfully, his job doesn't know he's here. No one knows what Steve did.

Well, he curls under the guilt, except for Danny.

Jesus _Fuck_.

He can't even think about it.

Still watching the man -- trying to divine what this mountain of a man would choose if he were to fuck up again -- Steve frowns.

Because, he thinks, judging by the guy's nerves, his next strike will be punished more permanently than a few weeks of behaviorial therapy videos.

 

* * *

 

 

Steve grows a restlessness in his bones that is nearly painful. He spends most of his time running the circular track around the compound or wishing he is running around the circular track around the compound. He misses the ocean, the rush of the surf.

Mostly, he misses Danny. The broad shoulders, the brilliant smile, the tawny sun-bronzed skin. The tight pants and the stupid tie.

So when they ask him on day 40 if he feels he’s a danger to himself or society, he says ‘no’ and, okay, maybe that’s a lie because he hates himself as much as he did on day one, but he wonders what they intend to do differently.

The weekly shrink meetings aren’t getting him anywhere and he wagers that, as a Navy seal, even if he went completely feral he’d still be more level headed and intelligent than most of these guys in here on a good day. Maybe that’s the secret, maybe you just learn to live with feeling like shit.

The meds they’ve been giving him begin to ween off, suddenly; Steve doesn’t ask what he’s getting less of, or what they’ve ever given him in the first place. After all, he intends to search the protocols on the five-0 servers and access every single thing they’ve written about him and his treatment like the control freak he is.

As the pills in the cup start to dwindle from three yellows, a white, and a pink to just one pink, he feels more like Steve McGarret and less like a stranger wandering in thick, stifling fog.

But with his newfound clarity, his memories come back sharper.

His dreams begin to torture him with details he never wished to remember, and he spends the next few days haunted by the night time.

 

* * *

 

It’s three in the morning and Steve will never admit that he is literally afraid to sleep because of the look that Danny gives him in his nightmares.

It’s with a painful tightening of his muscles that kneads through him like a punishing swell of unease that he knows he can single out the absolute worst moment of that day almost three months ago.

As Danny is slowly losing consciousness, Steve had come down from the feral blackout, like waking up from a first person nightmare, only to let out a deeply wounded, agonizing wail of horror at what he realized he’d just done.

What had happened next, though -- steve clenches his jaw shut and looks up at the ceiling in shameful evasion -- is that Danny had managed to turn his face and peer up at him with a blue tear stricken eyes.

At first, the tears had startled the Seal, and he had pulled back on reflex only to realize that he was buried to the hilt in Danny's hot, tight ass.

Steve had knotted him. Had mated him, even if all field officer omegas were on mandatory birth control, Steve was mating Danny. Trying to.

"Oh god," Steve choked, tensing behind his omega. They hadn't even officially bonded yet, and two months after discovering Danny's true sub gender, he wakes up violating him, covered in blood, fucking him into a cold marble floor.

The omega had winced and gasped out a pained groan before blinking up Steve as the alpha tries to reach to turn his bruised face.

Steve had expected anger, and hatred, and a punishing glare that only someone you loved and who loved you back could give you, and he looked for it in the blue eyes as he leaned over Danny’s shoulder.

But the look was not angry.

Not full of hate, like Danny should have been -- like Danny had a right to be.

And as steve had looked back at him, feeling his own face contort into twisted grief and confusion, the blonde’s shaking bloody hand had reached, barely moving, until he could gently grab Steve’s hand.

"Oh fuck, Danny, baby -- I -- I b-blacked out! I -"

Danny (Jesus fuck, his sweet, beautiful kind, loving Danno) had given him a quick squeeze, and nods.

The thought makes his unkempt, unshaven face fall into his palms with a pained smile at the wretched irony of the whole fucking mess.

Danny had tried to comfort him -- Steve, the alpha who had so deeply and perversely violated the most private and guarded nature of Danny’s trust, identity, and biological.

On the back of his partner’s neck, the skin is flushed red and heated under his intense and white knuckled Alpha grip; the kind that triggers an instinct response in omegas.

The automatic, biological response was apparently strong enough to force Danny to lay still and submit while Steve must have taken from him what he had craved so innately: the heady scent of his pheromones, concentrated around the blonde’s neck, telling steve that he is vulnerable, fertile, and in desperate need of a mate; delicious, hot slick that had dripped down Danny’s thighs; and finally his hot heat gripping steve’s length from base to tip, milking his knot as Steve’s seed flooded him full.

He had torn the omega up and rutted him after four years of being partnered as equals, as alphas, as Five-0.

And still the blonde had held his fucking hand afterward-- eyes so soft and trusting -- before his palm had fallen limply against Steve’s hand in unconsciousness.

That night, steve is belted to his bed after slamming his head against his window hard enough to break the glass and nearly enough to break his skull.

The next morning, day forty one, they ask if he’s a danger to himself and others, and he says yes.

The yellow and white pills are back.

 

* * *

 

After day seventy, when his insurance coverage runs out, the psych doctors conveniently pronounce him sufficiently reconditioned and rehabilitated, to which steve responds with a frowning stare and a resigned sigh. After a beat he nods, packs his belongings together, shaves this ridiculous beard off his pale face and walks out that evening, free to be a danger to society and his loved ones.

Steve drives across the island, through the brightly lit city, straight to Danny’s unfortunate excuse of an apartment. By the time he pulls his truck into the parking lot, the SEAL has changed his mind -- and changed it back again -- no less than four times. Afghanistan is easier than this. Jumping out of a plane at ten thousand feet above active fire is delightful compared to this.

Even after opening the door to step out of the truck’s cab, he fucking sits there, door open to god knows what type of low life lurks I around in a lovely area like this, with one hand refusing to let go of the steering wheel, anchoring himself to this vehicle like it’s saying a big fat ‘nope’ to this reunion he’s run through in his head a thousand times.

He doesn’t have to go in, Steve reasons.

As far as Danny and the team know, he’s still on requested leave from work.

But his teeth start to worry the inside corner of his lip, sharp alpha teeth giving him a punishing distraction as he thinks about the fifty eight --good jesus fuck, fifty eight-- missed calls on his cell phone from Danny.

Steve finally gets a grip and steps outside, slamming the truck’s door and forcing his suddenly immobile feet to move in a fashion that delivers him to Danny’s front door.

He doesn’t knock, he doesn’t even try. Is it wrong that Steve takes it as a positive sign that Danny hasn’t changed his locks? Because he’s able to use his old key and, muttering a prayer under his breath, and walks in.

But Danny, and most of his belongings, are gone. 

 

* * *

 

"Where is Danny?"

They look at him like they're seeing a ghost.

"Boss," his beta Kono breathes, and Chin must be close by when she says it; he appears a few seconds later.

"Brah, where in the world have you been! And don't say it's classified," his old friend calls out.

"Danny," he blurts, eyes flicking around the room in a mechanical, predatory way. "Where is he?" He starts to walk meaningfully toward his mate's office, and he hears one of the betas running to catch up with him.

"Steve," Chin says, turning to walk backwards in his path; he raises up his hands as if to slow him down. "Hold on, Steve."

There's just enough force in his voice to send a quiver down his tense, bowstring nerves, because it almost sounds vaguely like a challenge -- almost sounds like this tall, suave, tawny beta is trying to stop him. Steve has to stop his lips from curling back over his teeth.

The beta locks eyes with him, pursing his lips. "There's something you should know."

"And what is that, Beta?" He snaps, hackles starting to raise because he fucking hates not being in the loop, on the loop, and in express control of said loop as well as any loop-age happening in his general vicinity.

"Boss," kono says slowly, reaching out a gentle hand to coax some of the tension out of his shoulders. "Danny's sick."

Something in the air around him shatters and falls to the floor, leaving a ringing void in its place.

"What?"

"Danny is sick, Steve," Chin says quietly. He means to usher him away from the detective's office but Steve stubbornly shoves against his palms to shake him off.

"What kind of sick? Like the flu?"

"No. Not like the flu." Kono bites her lip, locking eyes with Chin. "We don't know. He just isn't doing well, and hasn't been since you left. Not just emotionally," she clarifies, giving him a pointed look with a sad expression. "He won't go to a doctor. But he's... He looks different -- I didn't want it to startle you."

Chin backs out of his path and Kono follows suit. "We just wanted to give you a heads up brah. Take it easy on him, and see if you can convince him to go to a doctor, because he won't listen to any of us."

Kono's gaze lingers on his and Steve knows that she knows that whatever it is, it was caused partly by his absence.

 

* * *

 

When Steve slowly creaks open the door to Danny's office, the detective doesn't look up.

"Caught your scent as you walked in," he says flatly, staring down at the paperwork he's filling out. "And I can hear that Kono and Chin still think I'm dying. Which I almost did -- not that you care."

This is not how we expected their reunion to start.

"Danny..."

Look at me, touch me, let me hold you.

"Seventy three days."

The alpha blinks, swallowing dryly, and it's then that he notices how Danny's dress shirt is hanging off of his shoulders slightly, how thin his wrists are.

"Danny, I--"

The omega looks up at him, deep shadows bloomed under his eyes and cheekbones hollowed and gaunt. It looks like he hasn't shaved in days, and his blue eyes are red rimmed and glassed over from what looks like lack of sleep.

Steve's lips part in surprise and something seizes in his chest. He's struck speechless for a moment.

As if Danny can sense what he's thinking, he leans back in his chair and crosses his arms, looking away to avoid his scrutinizing gaze. "Don't look as pretty as you remember, do I; stress'll do that to you."

"Danny, what...what is this? What's wrong with you?" Steve walks closer and the omega shivers. "I can't smell you-- I can't even smell... anything. What did you do?"

The omega meets his eyes for a moment and stares down at his paperwork instead; "Adrenal pheromone blockers. They work pretty well, don't they."

Frowning, the Alpha takes another sniff, and yeah, nothing. Those pills didn't work this well before.

Danny steeples his hands together. "You gonna tell me where in the fuck you were for seventy five days?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Steve asks somberly, quietly moving a stack of papers and sitting on the corner of Danny's desk.

"I remember my mate leaving me without so much as a text or an e-mail to explain anything," the blonde snaps tersely, but his voice breaks on the last word and he clears his throat. "At least the last few times I got a letter, so I could come bail your ass out of trouble. So tell me, Steven, where the HELL were you?"

Steve can't even answer because he's confused. This is what Danny's upset about? Steve loses control and brutally, sexually attacks his omega at work and Danny's upset that he hasn't heard from him?

There's a sheen of sweat on the blonde's skin like he's feverish. He looks like he's resigned from life in general, like he's a deathly pale ghost of himself.

He looks like he's dying.

"Daniel--" Steve rushes forward to put a hand on him, but, before he can make contact, he gets a hiss and four fresh gashes on the back of his hand. "Arrraghh!" Steve barks in pain, jerking his hand back.

"Don't you fucking touch me!" the omega snarls through his teeth, slowly pulling himself to his feet, but he looks unsteady -- like he's dizzy. God he looks so frail.

The sight of it causes a physical pain in his chest and clenches his stomach into a knot. "Danny, what the fuck is going on? What happened to you?"

Throwing up his hands in exasperation, the detective lets out a cynical laugh wheezing slightly. "Oh, now you give a shit about me?! After 73 days?!" He narrows his gaze, stepping closer to shove a clawed finger at his chest so hard that the tip of it nicks his skin. "I'll tell you what happened you prick. YOU HAPPENED."

Steve reaches out, ignoring the fact that his scratched hand is starting to bleed, and grips the smaller man's biceps like a vice. "Calm down -- you fuckin' look like you're about to pass out..."

"Of course I don't look well, you prick," the omega shouts, struggling against his strong arms. "I woke up in a closet, covered in blood, with a bond bite on my neck, and you weren't there, Steven!"

Steve clenches his arms harder, "I was in rehab Danny, I checked myself in, for -- for what I did to you." The omega locks eyes with him, eyes shining and steamy, and Steve's hands curl off of him.

"I was your mate, I was your omega," the blonde hisses incredulously. "You lost control from the concussion, and you didn't have a choice. But you chose to abandon me when I needed you most."

"After what I did?" Steve breathes, eyes pained as he stares back. The blonde is looking at him like he barely recognizes him, and frowns.

"You don't even know what you did," Danny mutters, reaching for his cane and when did that start again?

"Whats with the cane -- what is this?" Steve mutters, blocking the doorway. "Danny, tell me."

"Move," the blonde snaps, shifting to lean on his cane.

Steve feels the alphadren flooding through his system at the challenge. He feels the hair on the back of his neck and spine twinge on end from this stand off. His brain keeps switching into dominance and aggression, partly because Danny doesn't smell like himself, like anything, and doesn't smell like his mate.

"Did you break our bond?" Steve asks firmly but it comes out as a growl.

He sees a flicker of hurt in Danny's eyes. "No. But not because it didn't cross my mind."

A whine threatens to rise up in Steve's throat. "Then why don't you smell like my mate?"

"I told you, Steven, the fucking adrenal blockers! Now move!"

"They weren't this strong before, I can't smell anything about you -- you don't even smell human, Danny!" He steps in closer, baring down on him and Danny hisses at him, either angry or frightened, when he gets too close.

"It's a fucking double dose, okay? Now, move, or I'm going to punch you and walk out over you."

Steve knows he should move but he doesn't.  
Call it weeks of suppression from being taught to calm himself with yoga and breathing exercises.

Call it a disturbing unease in his skin from seeing his mate but not smelling him.

Call it a trigger response to his dominance instincts or maybe even sexual frustration.

But he doesn't move. "You couldn't if you tried," he snarls.

The omega surprises him by lunging forward and taking a swing at his face... Only to fake him out and head-butt him in the chest.

The alpha coughs, wheezing as all of the wind is knocked out of him, and slumps in the door frame. His hand awkwardly wrenches back behind him to clutch at the door frame to hold himself up, but he can't support himself at the weird angle on his wrist.

Danny huffs in annoyance and steps over his tangled form when the alpha just slides down to the floor and no.

No. Just...

No.

The alpha side of his brain rages up in burning urge to sink his fangs into the nearest part of this strange not-mate-smelling challenger to his authority, but Steve is able to quell the instinctual trigger and compromises by just springing up and tackling his mate to the floor.

The omega howls out and Chin and Kono come running from the far side of the office where the betas have been avoiding he and Danny's raging tempers.

But Steve still has time to get the omega into a headlock as he snarls up at his betas.

But then the omega is tapping his arm in submission, wheezing frantically. "Steve-- Steve stop--"

"Not until you tell me what's going on!" He roars. Or until he passés out. Either or.

It's when chin and Kono are trying to edge closer to separate Danny from him that the omega gasps a labored breath against his arm and locks his two frightened blue eyes onto his. Danny finally hisses out a hoarse plea to him.

Steve leans closer.

"Let me go, I'm carrying!" He hisses desperately into Steve's ear, starting to claw at his arm.

Steve's grip lessens slightly as he cocks his head back in confusion. "Carrying what?" He barks.

Danny grimaces in hesitation, glancing to be sure that Kono and Chin cannot hear him. "Your pups -- babies."

Steve tenses, eyes widening. Time and space freeze into a thin layer of ice, shattering in shards around him.

His senses take over in the absence of rational thought-- the smell of the morning coffee, the busy hum of the office, Danny's racing heartbeat, Chin and Kono's beta stress. This can't be real. He's dreaming.

Meanwhile, Danny is red faced, and starting to black out. "Steve, I'm pregnant."

Steve suddenly lets go of him, settling him down gently.

The omega claws up the granite floor to pull himself awkwardly to his feet, leaning against a far wall, panting. Chin and Kono struggle with a dart gun.

Around Steve, the world still isn't moving. "D-danny..."

There's a sting in his neck, one that he definitely feels.

The last thing he sees is an expression of pity in Danny's reddened, eyes as he coughs to catch his breath.

It's real. It's actually happening.

_Holy fucking hell, he bred Danny._

 

* * *

 

He wakes up to the scent of his own house, his own bed. But it smells different, sweeter.

Glancing around, he notices that it's slightly different than he remembers. It looks cleaner, but with more stuff cluttering some of the surfaces and floor space. Someone else's watch, someone else's wallet, phone and spare change. Someone else's shoes are lined along his wall next to his, and even the sheets and lamp look different.

Next to him, freshly showered, Danny is flipping through an old, dog-eared sailing magazine.

"Danny," he grunts, meaning to sit up, and, wow -- that was a fucking mistake. His stomach turns with nausea.

Danny sets the magazine aside and gently places a palm on his chest, "Hey, hey, no, babe. Cool it for a moment, huh?"

When Danny is leaning over him, Steve first experiences what he can only describe as the most heavenly scent that has ever graced his senses. He can almost feel his pupils expanding in euphoric recognition of this addictive sensation and he reaches up desperately trying to pull the source -- Danny -- closer. "Holy fuck," he moans, reaching up to wrap his arms around the omega. "Danny --I... How...? You smell so good..."

“Woah, hey -- ”The blonde makes a noise of protest and sighs as he's pulled down against his chest, but lays there patiently while Steve gets used to his new scent. “Allllright, this is just happening, isn't it. Okay.”

The alpha buries his face in his neck, making the detective squirm in surprise when his mate starts lapping his tongue over his omega gland.

“You smell...”

“Like I’m carrying pups,” Danny murmurs against him, trying to be patient.

“I like it... Christ, I love it.”

"You're gonna get scent drunk if you don't stop that," Danny huffs softly and Steve shakes his head against him, nuzzling the smell all over his face until he feels like he's successfully inhaled the scent of golden sun and fresh cool cotton and vanilla honey all the way into his brain stem.

"Wow." The alpha exhales, laying back against the bed, and really this stuff is... Is doing something to him, because he feels a sort of post orgasmic bliss tingle through his body and his eyes are watering.

"Steve did you just--" Danny smirks. "Yeah. Right on my thigh. That's nice. Can't wait till that dries in a bunch of my leg hair."

He goes to say something and can only blink dumbly at him.

"Aww, look at you babe, I'm sorry. I didn't realize that it would be this strong, I should've toned it down a bit..." Danny purrs into his chest, kissing up to the corner of his jaw where he nuzzles and marks himself with his Alpha's pheromone signatures.

The omega then sighs in contentment and props himself up on one elbow to thumb away the moisture at the edge of Steve's eyes. He's watching the Alpha carefully with a curious expression, like he's waiting for him to ask him something.

And Steve knows what it is.

"That's ah... what you smell like all the time, now?"

Danny nods, a soft smile playing at his lips. "Yeah. That's why I have to cover my scent so well. Other alphas would be following me down the street and jizzing their pants behind me in line at a fuckin deli."

"Why would you smell good to them?" Steve raises up so quickly that it almost startles his omega, but the blonde only watches him silently. "These are my pups."

Danny holds his gaze. "If we all lived in caves and wore loincloths -- which I'm pretty sure you and at least half of your family do when I'm not looking, you fucking animal – and you abandoned me, then another alpha would try to take me. Keep me. Mark my pups as theirs... or...”

The omega ducks his gaze, clenching his jaw, and the sour scent of unease makes Steve bite back a whine, shaking his head. He doesn't want to hear the rest, because he's seen the censored Discovery Channel episodes about what male lions do to another male's cubs when they take over a pride, and it involves a lot of desperate gutteral noises and panic from the lionesses and shrieking from the tiny cubs that always comes to an abrupt and haunting stop.

Jesus, the thought lingers with the alpha like a fading nightmare, so he turns to place a reassuring hand over Danny's belly. The omega relaxes a bit, scent sweetening as he apparently remembers that no one in their right mind would mess with the pups of a 6'3" navy SEAL with a notoriously dangerous reputation and a propensity for blowing things up.

After almost half an hour of acclimating to Danny's scent -- and Danny shoving his face out of his scent glands-- Steve slowly starts to come down from the ecstasy-like Omegadren high. He leans over the silent omega and starts to pull at the hem of his undershirt, and, as if waiting for permission, he locks eyes with Danny. The omega gives him a long look like he's hesitating before he finally nods, settling back flat on the sheets.

  
"I was gone for three months," Steve says suddenly, like that explains why he has to witness any changes to his mate’s abdomen.

Danny nods and yawns slowly against the back of his own wrist, stretching lazily as Steve tugs up the white shirt to reveal the golden skin of his mate's belly. There's only a tiny patch of golden fuzz at the lowest part of his belly and it is otherwise completely hairless. As is the rest of Danny's torso now, Steve realizes, touching the smooth skin.

"Most of the hair fell out the first month," the omega explains. "Excess omegadren."  
Steve nods, eyes falling to the gentle swell of Danny's lower belly. It's real. It's there, and he can see it and how it's changed.

Holy _fuck_.

Rocking back on his heels, Steve brings up a hand and runs it nervously over his scalp. “Jesus, Danny. I...” he widens his eyes at a loss for words.

Danny tugs his shirt down and looks up with a frown. “Are you... okay with this?”

“Me?” Steve blinks. “Are _you_ okay with this – they're under your shirt, not mine! Please tell me you at least wanted kids before I … did this to you.”

Danny raises his brows and looks away evasively. “Steve, you know me. I always wanted pups. And I knew I'd be a father one day.”

“But?”

Danny sighs and looks down at his stomach again, cocking his head slightly. “I just didn't think I'd be, ah... the one cooking them up from scratch. If you get what I mean. I honestly thought we'd adopt one day or something, ya know?”

Steve nods silently, worrying a thread from the sheets between two fingers. This next question isn't easy to ask and the words are painful to even think about. “Did you think about getting rid of them?”

“Steve…” The omega is silent for a long moment, swallowing thickly. He obviously doesn't to follow the conversation down this road.

A beat passes; it’s enough time for a lump to form in the back of Steve’s throat, which makes the words even harder to get out. “When I was gone. In the beginning? I know you must have thought about it.”

“Look, Steve, I wanted them eventually. And I still want them, I do. I just... I really didn't want to be pregnant.” He says it quietly, an edge of guilt in his tone. “There was a while there when I didn't know what I wanted.

Raising his brows and huffing air out of his nose, Steve lets the words weigh heavy on his shoulders as the omega continues bringing up a hand to wave broadly.

“I didn't want to keep puking all the time, I didn't want to stop drinking, I didn't want to get all big around the middle or -- or start nesting for God’s sake, and lose my chest hair. I just didn't want to deal with that,” Danny exhales a long breath, starting to ramble even faster. “And you weren't there, and I couldn't find you…”

Trying to ignore his alpha half's anger and confusion at the admission, Steve reminds himself that he's more than his instincts. He’s more than Danny’s alpha, and he understands why the omega wasn’t initially excited by the pups, even if it hurts him to think about it. “I don't know many guys that would want to go through it. But I'm assuming, by the fact that you're still pregnant, that you made your peace with it?”

 _Please say yes_ , Steve finds himself thinking desperately, and Jesus he's already feeling attached to pups he can't even see or hold. _Jesus God in heaven, please say yes_.

When Danny looks up at the ceiling for a second, his eyes are shining around the edges. “I wouldn't call it peace.” He smiles, almost in resignation or self-deprecation: “I'd call it, 'I want to have your pups, and I want to have them more than I don't want to carry pups in general.'”

Steve mulls over the words with a soft smile and leans suddenly to embrace Danny tightly, pulling him in against his chest and kissing his temple and then leaning slightly to kiss his bond bite. Danny sighs against him, but his scent is happy, and relieved, and sweet from the pups, and Steve is sure that his matches it. He holds him for a second longer, rubbing his back slowly, and smiles faintly as Danny's scent changes to safe in his arms.

“But ever since I got over the initial freak out,” Danny murmurs, placing a tentative hand on his lower stomach, “I feel myself wanting these pups more every day. Even though they’re going to be over-achieving, 6’ 4”, reckless SEAL pups that are probably going to blow up the back shed with fireworks or something.”

“Danny, I don't have a shed,” the SEAL laughs.

“Well, good. Don't buy one because your little monsters will blow it up one day,” Danny mutters and Steve chuffs a laugh against Danny's skin. “But I’ll raise them in the light side of the force, with quiet hobbies like books, painting, and model airplanes or something... before you can draw them to the dark side with nerf guns and super soakers.”

Steve feels his eyes go steamy at the thought and he blinks the feeling away, clearing his throat. He then pulls back with a sheepish expression. “The governor's going to laugh in our face when we ask for maternity leave.”

Danny shoves him. “Paternity leave.”

“Right, sorry. You’ve got to take leave at one point, whatever PC label you want to give your little baby vacation,” Steve mutters, but his thoughts turn back to the thorn needling into his chest and he sighs, glancing down at his hands. “God, Danny, I can't believe I left you to deal with this alone for so long, I'm sorry. And I can't say it enough, I just – it didn't even cross my mind. I knew you were on blockers for so long, I didn't even think...” He holds his forehead.

“Hey. Stop, babe. You didn't know,” Danny says, quick to prevent Steve from torturing himself. He gently tugs his hand down and squeezes it. “The blockers I was taking were like birth control, but I can't get birth control without being a registered omega. I missed a dose that day, but still, the odds of this happening outside of a heat were almost nil... so I guess you should be proud of yourself, you putz.”

The alpha purses his lips sheepishly, and reaches out to put a comforting hand on Danny's thigh, gently thumbing the skin near the hem of his boxers. “I never would’ve left if I’d even known it was possible.” He pauses, starting to blush at a memory. “I actually knew I wanted to raise a family with you a long time ago. When I saw you holding that Alpha pup at work -- the one that social services wasn't going to be able to pick up until late that night?”

Danny nods. “I remember her, feisty little thing. Definitely all alpha.”

The corners of the alpha’s mouth turn up in a gentle, easy smile. “I couldn't ever get it out of my mind, Danny. I was afraid to say it out loud, but I guess I wanted this pretty badly.”

The omega grins, “Is that why you wouldn't stop staring at me when I was holding her? You came in the breakroom to get coffee six times in an hour, I swear to God.”

Blushing the alpha shakes his head, “I'll admit that certain... imagery appeals to my alpha half. And when the man you love is holding a tiny pup, all you can do as an Alpha is picture him holding your own tiny pups.”

The grin that breaks across Danny's face when he laughs at this is nearly blinding and Steve stares for a moment in awe like one would stare at the sun; brilliant, blazing, and captivating. “I knew I could calm her down; babies love omegas. I had her little nose right on the scent marker in my neck.”

They lay there together for most of the day, reacquainting themselves with eachothers' scents and assuaging their fears of wasting time with the fact that time enjoyed isn't wasted. Steve has so many questions for Danny, and the omega is thrilled to answer them, to finally share the news he's been hiding for months from everyone in his life.

Eventually however, the questions are less fun than practical.

“Kono is still convinced I have cancer, I think," he sighs in response when Steve asks how much the team knows about this. He's gathering the omega into his arms.

"They know that something's up, and I think they know I started sleeping here when you were gone."

"So they don't know about ... You?" Steves face is behind him but Danny can hear the concerned expression in his voice.

“No. We can't tell them.” Danny shakes his head. "I am all beta all the time at Five-0, babe. If anyone finds out about me, the registry is going to have the right to cause me a hell of a lot of grief."

"Omegas are dying out, Danny," Steve murmurs sadly, pulling back to kiss Danny's sensitive neck. "Maybe it's a good cause... What if something happens to you? Your health?"

"Babe, I am healthy as a horse," he snaps, then falters. "A horse that's seen better days, maybe, but still. If THRESH finds out I'm an omega, they'll have the right to take me from my home, poke me full of needles, and run tests on me like a lab rat."

Steve's grip on him hardens subtly. "Even if you're carrying?"

"Even more so."

Steve shifts uneasily, a growl rumbling up from his chest at the thought, and the sound gives Danny goosebumps; Steve can feel them as he strokes along his mate's bare arms.

"They're not gonna find out then. Even if it's for a good cause -- I don't care. I'm not letting them take you from me, especially not while you're like this."

Danny nods, silently regarding him, but his fingers are nervously pulling at a thread in the sheets, so Steve moves to his top half over him, protectively, to subconsciously comfort him. The omega weaves the tips of his fingers through Steve's dark hair as the alpha listens through the grumbling of Danny's abdomen for the sounds of the pups' heartbeats.

To his alpha half, this is everything Steve has ever fucking wanted, and he leans up to lick along Danny's scent markers under his neck, inhaling deeply because yeah, they’re definitely doing this, nesting, and Steve loves smelling the sweet scent on danny’s skin that reveals that the omega is growing full with his pups.

"Steve, careful, you're gonna knock yourself out on omegadren and I'll be trapped under your big stupid body," Danny shoves at him playfully. “It’s stronger than Ecstacy for an Alpha.”

And, oh fuck, the taste -- Steve can't even remember being stressed about T.H.R.E.S.H. Or the team now and he starts to bite and suck on the scent marker, pulling a surprised gasp from Danny.

The alpha in him is lazily rolling on its back in the far corner of his mind with its tongue out, happier than a bird with a French fry. He lowers himself, edging backward toward the foot of the bed and turns to kiss the detective's barely swollen belly repeatedly.

When he shamelessly starts to lick the skin -- so that his alpha pheromone signatures are extra potent over the pups, Danny yanks him up by his half buttoned flannel shirt, "That's enough, you sap, you get six more months to annoy the hell out of me trying to bond with them in there -- let's try to spread it out."

"Morse code, Danny," Steve blurts excitedly. "What if they could learn m--"

"No," the omega says flatly. "I love you, babe, and I love that Jason Bourne is your spirit animal, but no. The more pheromones you take in the higher you're gonna get." He presses a kiss to Steve's forehead. The alpha doesn't let this deter him from the cloud nine ecstasy induced by Danny's new, pregnant-omega scent. He’s absolutely intoxicated with adoration.

"That's okay. I love you. I love the pups, too," Steve whispers, clumsily hugging him closer. "I love you so fucking much, Danny, you're amazing -- this is amazing, and--"

Danny flails in annoyance when the larger man rolls them both over. "Jesus, Steven! You're like a 220 pound octopus with your goddamn mile-long arms -- I told you to be careful."

"You be careful," Steve slurs in response, attaching his mouth to Danny's neck and sucking the skin into his mouth.

"No no, stop that, I'm cutting you off," Danny snaps, covering his neck with his hands.

But Steve takes the opportunity to roll them over again, and attaches his mouth to one of his sensitive nipples instead.

The detective yelps. "Ow, what the -- Back to the neck! _Back to the neck_!"

 

 

* * *

 

 

A week later, their routine from before Steve's absence is almost revived; he no longer gets completely scent drunk off of his mate when he forgets to wear deodorant around the house, but they're both still adjusting to grappling their minds around impending fatherhood -- and the issues Danny's condition presents.

They can't ask for leave.

In fact all core members of Five-0 (even Jerry and Max) have just been forced to sign a contract, after Steve's last unexplained stunt, that they can commit to a certain amount of hours every week.

Mid they breach their obligation, Five -0 will be shut down, as it's a very costly organization, legislatively and monetarily.

So all of this -- the two of them, the fact that Danny isn't really a beta, and what's currently growing in the pit of Danny's belly have to be kept a secret until they figure out what to do.

Steve is mulling over all of this one morning before work as he makes coffee, rubbing his neck. It's sore for some reason, and it doesn't feel like normal stress. He also woke up at the foot of the bed, and Danny was already in the shower.

The alpha sets out the almond milk, sugar, and travel mugs as his mate trudges down the stairs and greets him with a hand gently scratching up and down his back. "Sleep well?"

The detective chuffs a laugh. "No, I did not."

Furrowing his brows together, Steve flicks his eyes up in concern.

"You were pretty wigged out by something last night," Danny explains, tugging open the refrigerator door. Everything is green. Ew. "Steve what is all this?" He picks up some kind of giant leaf.

"That's Swiss chard," he mutters quickly, turning over his shoulder. "And what do you mean, wigged out?"

Danny tosses the plant haphazardly back into the Drawer of No Return at the bottom of the fridge, where this prehistoric plant will slowly rot unnoticed. "A, the only Swiss thing I want in this fridge is cheese, and B, you were upset and... Well, whining for an hour, and finally just curled up on me and tried to smother me to death like a big, heavy cat."

Steve stops stirring his coffee, staring down at it. His expression is almost one of concern.

Danny glances over the look on his mates face and purses his lips. He sets out a bagel, cream cheese, and green olives, shoving a handful into his mouth because he's probably starving. "Your hormones or, uh... Instincts or whatever, might be amping up, babe, it's really not that big of a deal -- I just love complaining, you know this."

Steve nods silently. "I do." He doesn't sound convinced.

"Or maybe it's normal? I don't know. But in six months we're not going to be sleeping and we need to get ahead while we can." He's pointing at him with the cream cheesy butterknife.

Steve scoffs. "I was probably just mad that you were stealing all of my covers, which is, by the way, your favorite trick." He shoots Danny a playful look as he slaps the cap onto his thermos and walks out toward the car.

While Danny is making his disgusting sandwich, Steve pulls up an Amazon page for a Nest and feels the blush heat his cheeks.

All he can remember last night is a weird dream that he and Danny were Kangaroos and had four joeys that kept trying to hop away in all different directions because Steve's paws couldn't hold any tools to put an Ikea play pen together.

Danny doesn't have to know that.

Danny doesn't need to know that not having an official nest has been bothering him ever since he found out about the pups. Apparently, his primal brain is more upset than he'd realized, and he needs to nip this in the bud.

"It's just a bed -- it's just a bed," Steve sighs, wincing as he hits the checkout button. He's been telling himself he wouldn't let Danny's hormones get under his skin.

It's only been a week and he just had to order a nest. A NEST. He runs a palm over his face and sighs, wondering what his navy seal buddies would think of him, sitting in a nest like a fucking blue jay.

Danny yanks open the car door and sinks down into the seat next to him, breath reeking of cream cheese and green olive and Steve blinks because Jesus God in heaven that is lethal.

"Anything negative you're about to say about my breakfast you can keep to yourself, Steven," Danny warns, mouth full of bagel.

"Wasn't gonna. I'm just happy you're eating," Steve quips, revving up the engine. "And I hope you're prepared for heartburn with a vengeance in half an hour -- don't come crying to me."

"I have a jar of rolaids on my desk now," he retorts, licking one of his fingers delicately. "Pua keeps eating them. Keeps telling me my candy tastes like chalk and I keep fuckin' tellin' him it's 'cause they are not candy. But I dunno, some times I think nothing's going on upstairs with him."

Steve smirks, shaking his head. He's half way to the office when Danny's phone starts buzzing.

"Chin," Danny says as he connects the call to the car's Bluetooth. "Gotcha on speaker, buddy, what's up."

<<Steve's with you, right?>>

"Uh, yeah, hey man. Right here," Steve says, because really, it's a thing, a known thing that they are always together. But he has no idea if it's a known thing that they are together all night, too.

<<You guys are gonna want to head on over to the other end of the island, brah.>>

"Crime scene?" Danny asks.

<<Yeah, and it's a bad one>>

Steve stares intently down the road with a frown. "Who's the vic?"

Chin is silent for a long time. <<Right now we're just trying to figure out how many victims there are.>> The man sighs into the phone. <<That'll be easier when we get our alpha out here, to uh... sort out all of the pieces.>>

"Christ almighty Chin, I haven't even had a full cup of coffee yet," Danny mutters, pulling a face. "And Steven," he hisses quietly, gesturing to his middle; "We are never telling the kids that I did this with them."

He's just quiet enough that the chin can't hear it over blue tooth, but Steve does and the thought unsettles the alpha half of his brain.

Onviously, the alpha doesn't want his mate or his pups anywhere near where some psychopathic killer has ever thought about going or might return to, and half of him is slamming on the breaks, turning around, and dragging Danny up into their den by the back of his neck and locking him in.

He can't ask Danny to quit his job. The blonde would laugh in his face and then, eventually, try to swing a fist into his face, too.

So Steve begrudgingly settles for awkwardly stretching the tension out of his throat, stifling a growl.

<<You there, brah?>>

"On our way, Chin," Steve confirms, thumbing the end call button on his steering wheel.

The seal turns to Danny, meeting his eyes wearily as the blonde frowns back at him, and Steve knows the omega is mentally sifting through his riled up alpha pheromone signatures and trying to see if he'll act on them.

But he can't step on his partners toes like that, not after this whole thing started when he lost control four months ago.

"Babe, calm down. Whole car reeks like alpha stress and you know what that does to me," Danny sighs, cracking his window.

Steve exhales loudly, cracking his window, and pulls a more gentle than usual u-turn -- precious cargo and all that-- and speeds toward the crime scene.

 

* * *

 

"I told you to stay in the car, danno! Christ," Kono hears Steve growl before he suddenly darts away from her, startling the beta coroner and hpd lieutenant captain a few feet away from her and chin.

"Steve?" Kono calls out, but he just keeps running toward the car lot. "Has Danny been in the car this whole time?" She frowns and turns back to her Nikon camera. 

"I heard he was throwing up a lot from the smell," Chin answers. "It's not exactly pleasant."

"I hope that's all it was," she mumbles distractedly messing with the filter.

She's photographing a severed ear that's laying in the grass; cleanly cut, preserved flesh, not marred by any blood or other cuts. It doesn’t even look real, like it’s made of wax, but the panicked call from a very lost real estate agent checking on local foreclosed properties let’s her know that this isn’t a stage prop.

"Cuz this is weird," she mutters.

Chin -- eight feet away, photographing a toe that also lies in the grass-- turns to her and deadpans. “No shit.”

"No. I mean, yes! It's weird. But there's something..." She shakes her head, feeling nausea well up in her gut by the movement, because of GOD that 'smell' really is so bad that she won't be able to eat for days.

"I just mean that there's no blood, no scuff marks in the dirt, no shells or weapons, no note, no... No fucking crime scene, chin!" After she stands and brushes the grass off of her knees, she wraps her arms around her elbows tightly to her chest. "It's like somebody was just passing through with a... With a basket of body parts and just happened to drop some," she flags down the forensics team to come bag up the ear, "it's like they were dropping something as casual as..."

"Breadcrumbs?" Steve calls, his alpha ears having been following their conversation.

Kono nods. It's so much easier when he's leading the case; it's like working with a German shepherd on steroids the way he senses everything.

"Well, you might be right about that. According to Lukela, everything HPD has found so far is actually in a linear pattern," Steve explains, brows furrowed darkly as he sniffs the breeze from beyond the farm and and grimaces.

Chin is standing now with the team."A mix of ear, toe, and finger breadcrumbs?"

"That'd make for a hell of a casserole topping; maybe you can make one for Joe, Steve, I'm sure he has one every Sunday for brunch in North Korea," mutters Danny, and Kono blinks and would swear she almost forgot that he was there.

He's so uncharacteristically quiet today, tucked under Mcgarret's arm and pressed into his side. The Alpha's got a pretty tight hold on him, though, too.

The small detective must suddenly feel her stare down because he meets her eyes head on like he's daring her to say something about the way their boss is holding him so close. She looks away first, hiding a smile, but Danny slowly wriggles out from under the alpha's arm.

"Well, if these are the breadcrumbs, I'd hate to see what kind of a gingerbread house is waiting for us," Chin muses grimly, hands crossed over his chest.

Steve frowns too, shifting his steely gaze around the eerily quiet planes of the farm. "Probably something we won't forget."

The way he says it means he's probably already conjuring up a thousand and one ways this could have ended for the victims.

"You know what," Danny snorts cynically, pulling out his small pad of paper and a pen, and starts to leave the group for the old barn. "I said to myself today, I hope I get scarred for life today. I mean, really just get a good case right on in there to stir up some nightmares."

It's dry and brown here, like the whole farm knows it's been abandoned; there's a forlorn breeze that smells of smoke and death.

There's some long-cooled lava rock that they hit over the way down from the mountainside that suggests that the farms location near a volcano may be responsible for its abandonement.

 

* * *

 

"Commander McGarret, all of the body parts we have found so far are laid out with their matching tags from the scents you picked out. No one has located a head yet," Max relays to him. "Two teams are currently sweeping the tall grass in the original perimeter."

"Sounds good," Steve mutters, staring intently at a batch of mangled fingers and hands. "I'm almost done sorting these out by pheromone signature, but the skin smells like it's been refrigerated -- possibly in the same unit. The scents are all running together..."

"I will inform the technicians, sir..."

He feels the beta's hesitation and glances up.  
"What is it, Max?"

"Detective Williams appears to be vomiting again," Max says quietly, crouching down next to the alpha.

Steve pauses, glancing up at the fatigued orange and red horizon of this terrible fucking long morning, and lets out a slow exhale. "He's okay. Just let him do his thing, Max," he begins.

"I estimate that this is the third time this morning."

"He's fine."

Max frowns, wanting him to do something, until Steve looks up to drive the dismissal home.

The beta nods in submission before he begins to head into the old abandoned farmhouse, shoulders hanging a little bit lower than usual.

Little does Max know, the alpha rarely lets his eyes stray from his carrying omega detective, and keeps a vigil watch over him out of the corner of his eye.

The stocky blonde is currently leaning against a mango tree at the edge of the scene perimeter, wretching up everything he's eaten all morning into the bushes. Finally, after a few minutes, Danny leans, exhausted, with one hand on the tree as the other curls shakily under his tack vest on his lower belly.

Steve catches the attention of Lucy, a tech from forensics. "Bring Detective Williams a bottle of water, would you?"

She nods quickly, shyly keeping her face toward the ground as she scurries away from the uneasy alpha and he then tries his best to focus on the case.

He needs to focus.

Because there's something going on here that isn't like the cases Steve is normally sent out to profile with his alpha senses.

There's a darkness here.

He swears he can even feel it in the soil.

And, honestly, he's never considered himself a superstitious fellow, but stranger things have happened in his life in the last six months than he ever could have tried to prepare himself for.

And, Steve considers as he clenches his jaw and thinks of Danny and his unborn pups, if anything serious is going to cut into his personal life from a case, he prays that it's not while he's fucking nesting.

Steve shakes his head and blinks at the word. 'Excuse me, Commander McGarret can't lead the raid on the Yakuza because he's stuck at home fussing over his nest."

Christ. How is this his life?

 

* * *

 

The smell of his mate's oddly sweet, fake beta-spray scent catches his attention, and he looks up, glad for the reprieve from the dark thoughts this case is fueling.

"How ya feelin', Danny?" He stands up and brushes dirt off his knees.

"Fantastic, Steven, I love vomiting at crime scenes -- I look like a fuckin' rookie." Danny mutters quietly placing a hand on his stomach briefly before remembering that he's in public. "Fuck."

"You don't smell sick, you smell nervous."

"Because I'm not actually ill, Steven." He hisses, turning over his shoulder as he starts trudging toward the tree line. "But there's something absolutely nasty upwind of this joint."

"I don't think that's it," Steve grumbles, following him. "Talk to me, Goose."

A fresh haze of anxiety curls off his mate's skin as they start to walk beyond the perimeter. Danny throws up a hand vaguely and sighs. "I dunno, it's just... There's something about this case -- feels off."

"Don't tell me this case has got you spooked? After all those homicide cases you worked? It's just the first multi-vic murder we've worked in a while, babe. It's got us out of our comfort zone," Steve tries, and the lie tastes funny on his tongue because he's just as uneasy about the feel of this place.

Danny turns to raise a brow at him as if to call him out silently on the bullshit, and Steve shrugs.

The alpha watches as one of the omega's hands gingerly ghosts across the lowest part of his vest where the straps have been loosened to stretch over his belly.

"It would be bad enough to be here in fit, fighting form. But no, here I am -- full of pups, squeezed into this godforsaken vest, vomiting around the clock, meandering around under the hot ass sun through a creepy killing field farm that smells like burning human hair!"

"Burning hair?" Steve frowns at the fact that he somehow missed that scent. Are Danny's senses getting stronger -- stronger than his?!

"Are you even listening?" Danny snarls, throwing his hands up in exasperation, and the alpha blinks, completely caught off guard. "Unbelievable."

He bites his tongue on a sigh of exasperation when Danny's anxiety starts to edge toward a full on breakdown (third one this week) and Steve thanks every diety he can think of when the radio unit on his hip cuts into the tension.

<< McGarret, the team's done combing the scene -- I told them not to go any further until the alpha had scouted it out.>>

Steve puts a hand on his unit. "Yeah, thanks Chin. Danny actually uh... Caught a scent, so we're gonna check it out."

<<Wait -- what do you mean Danny caught a scent? Only alphas and omegas can scent. Danny's a beta, right?>>

Shit.

The detective glares at him and swats Steve on the bicep for slipping up, grabbing the radio.

"Well you see, Lieutenant Kelly, Steve's ego is actually so potent that any subgender can scent it. That is probably the only thing anyone could smell right now, because it's permeating the air out here."

<<Roger that, Detective>> Chin is laughing. At him.

The sound does something to his alpha brain, irritates the part of him that has been pins and needles all morning since realizing that he wants, needs Danny and the pups in a proper nest -- his nest -- and --

Steve squeezes a hand onto the back of Danny's neck, and yanks the radio back as the omega's body goes stiff as a board.

Danny's blue eyes are wide, surprised, and tinged with fear as he watches Steve growl new orders to the beta to hold back the team until he says otherwise. He never takes his furious eyes off his mate.

When he finally lets go of the omega, Danny takes a swing at him, but Steve effortlessly leans out of the way. "Don't ever grip me like that, especially not in public!" He hisses at him, and Steve bares his teeth until the blonde grits his jaw, leaning his head to the side to expose his neck to him.

"Then don't undermine me in front of my betas in public!"

"What?! Steve they get paid to answer to you -- we're cops, not lions! I'm pretty sure chin's not going to rip off his shirt one day and challenge you for your job title and benefits package."

"Considering that you hissed at two tiny Girl Scouts, we're not going to have a conversation about instinctual urges," he snaps, eyeing Danny pointedly.

The blond sighs running a hand through his blonde, wind tousled hair. He looks like he might be about to apologize, begrudgingly, but ends up violently lurching in the other direction to vomit into the grass for the third time this morning.

  
He gags and coughs until he's dry heaving with red, watering eyes.

Guilt comes boiling up in Steve's chest as he drags a hand down over his face, walking over to put a hand on his mate's back.

At first, the alpha holds the omega steady and then settles for rubbing his shaking shoulders as he pants, exhausted.

"Sorry," Steve murmurs quietly. His mind reels as he tries to think of a way to fix this, to make everything Okay, but God help him, he can't. "You ah... wanna go home?"

His omega takes a long wavering breath. "Can't go home, Steve, I'll have barely worked thirty hours this week. I've already been bailing on the team enough."

The alpha's brows furrow. "We could get you medical leave. Say you're sick or something..."

Danny straightens up slowly, glancing hopelessly up at the hot sun. "With what doctor? If I go in to get examined, I think they're gonna notice a few things that shouldn't be in a beta." He locks eyes with him, brow furrowed.

Steve puts his hands on his hips. "Well you're gonna have to go to a doctor eventually, Danny."

Danny doesn't reply, because really -- there isn't anything that can be said. The pups are a time bomb for him. It's not a question of if he's going to be found out by the registry, it's when.

At this point they haven't even gone to a doctor to make sure the pups are healthy, and that fact alone is enough to keep Steve awake at night tossing and clawing at the sheets.

He often turns to stare at his tawny mate in the middle of the night to see his face calm with the blankly serene expression of deep sleep, and watches him breathe. His broad chest raises up and down, and Steve usually sighs and hugs him a bit closer, more for his own security than Danny's.

Sometimes, though, he gently tugs up the edge of Danny's soft worn out tee shirts to stare at his slightly rounding pup belly with an apprehension so overwhelming that Steve then wants to gather the sleeping omega into his arms, sink his teeth into his bond gland, and not let Danny go. Not until the pups are out of him; and Steve can see that they're healthy and safe; and Steve can smell them, mark them, and hold them, nuzzle them; and then he'll kill anyone that tries to touch them; and --

"Let's go before they send a fucking tech out here." Danny's voice brings him back to the dry brown farm, and the blonde is staring like he's trying to make sure Steve's head is screwed on straight.

Right.

Work.

They have to work.

The blonde looks pissed off and hurt, and he knows Danny feels a little exposed right now, so he cuts him some slack, deciding not to let the work day drag on.

"I'm almost done. Give me ten minutes to toss out some flags and we can head out," he says.

God, he has no idea how wrong he is.

 

* * *

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bear with me if there are errors, y'all. I spent seven hours writing a research paper right before I "proofread" this. 
> 
>  
> 
> [*WARNING*= this chapter contains exceedingly dark imagery of gruesome crimes and murders. TRIGGER warning for miscarriage/abortion]

Steve steers Danny to ensure he avoids stepping on an old, rusted rake in the path, because it's almost half covered by leaves.

"I see it. I see it, get _off_ ," Danny paws his hand away. "You are unbelievable, you seriously think I'm that dumb -- that I was gonna bust myself in the face like a Looney Toon."

"Either that or contract Tetanus," Steve mutters.

"Oh please, I'm sure you keep Tetanus shots in your pocket, considering your hobbies. Which are, what -- I don't even know, juggling grenades or wrestling sharks or something."

"Spare me the sass, Daniel, and just watch where you're stepping," Steve mutters in mock annoyance, and Danny chuckles to himself.

The alpha then places a hand on the small of his omega's back, guiding him at a fork in the path. He's been tracking the scent in the wind for a few minutes since they left the old barn. "Let's go see what the hell the killer wants us to find out there."

Danny grumbles under his breath. "I'm sure this whack job isn't gonna' disappoint. If I puke one more time, my stomach's gonna shoot out of my mouth and go drag itself across the ground like a wounded animal."

Steve grins, shaking his head, but his smile falters because the rotting smell is getting stronger -- and more putrid -- as he walks through a dense, unkempt forest that he assumes acts as a median between fields.

Steve hasn't mentioned this out loud, but in his animal heart, his instinctual side, he knows they are walking toward the true horror -- the fingers and toes and ears are probably just an opening act to the real tragedy.

"Hey, we’ve got another ear," Danny mutters, dropping an evidence card. "And uh... I think that's a nose."

Steve drops a flag, and it sticks straight up in the ground where it lands, not saying anything as he walks on, moving in front of Danny as he leads them into the blazing sun of an open field.

"Looks like this used to be sugarcane?" Steve wonders, shoving at a dried out stalk of something with his dusty boot. "Danny look out for that thumb."

The blonde awkwardly does a sidestep, narrowly avoiding squishing the thumb laying unassumingly in the dried earth between the rows of dried, tall plants.

"Gagh -- I feel like I'm on an Easter egg hunt, only the eggs are -- obviously -- gross and bloody, and would make all the kids cry, and, well, the rabbit would probably look more like that thing from Donnie Darko... You remember that thing, babe? That rabbit thing?"

Steve sighs and an uneasy growl slips past his lips. "Whatever's across this field smells like it's gonna be worse than a horror movie, Danno."

The omega frowns, staring at what looks like an orchard. There are rows and rows of big, similar looking trees, but there are no leaves, and it's a sharp contrast to the lush green vegetation of the island.

"What are you picking up?" Danny's hand falls to his stomach in concern, but suddenly he's seeing the pro's of desk work as, a minute or so later, he finally catches a more definite whiff of the jarringly distinct foulness of rotting flesh and burning hair.

Danny almost gags, placing a hand over his nose and mouth.

It's hard to see when his eyes are watering, but the way Steve is standing -- just standing and staring -- Danny’s heart is starting to quicken in panic. “Steven,” he urges, “Can you see it from here? How bad is it?"

Steve’s hand drops limply to his side and Danny realizes it must have been over his mouth.

“If I'm seeing what I think I'm seeing,” comes his voice, solemn, quiet, "then I think we may be in over our heads for the first time. I'm.. I'm sorry, I just... You're going to have to see this for yourself."

Danny swallows thickly and tries to pretend his mouth hasn't suddenly gone dry because of the tone of Steve's voice. It sounds like the alpha's been punched in the chest, and that alone makes something in him snap.

 

 

He swallows thickly, his hand on his gun even though the only thing his ears are picking up is Steve growling behind him.

This one’s not too loud, and it’s more stress than anything, so Danny ignores him.

All the omega sees in the blistering sunlight is what looks like an orchard. But something’s off, because the bark looks way too dark. And the soil is black under the dark naked trees.

“Isn’t so bad,” he mutters to himself. “It’s just a bunch of burned trees.”

But his voice is way too quiet and not nearly confident enough to keep his heart from racing faster, because that smell is getting stronger and dammit he wishes he had Alpha eyes to avoid this fucking suspense shit.

He feels his alpha’s eyes on him, watching him protectively, and for once it's comforting and not overbearing.

When he glances back over his own shoulder, Steve is walking, statue serious, with his gun out at his side, and the alpha gives him this forlorn look with those sad, haunted eyes, like he’s sorry for something.

Sorry for what Danny is about to see.

And fuck if that doesn’t just make him want to turn and sprint the hell back to his car.

He stops when instinct flat out does not allow him to get any closer, his hand ghosting up under his tac vest to rest across his bump as the other waits on his gun.

He sees the trees, gnarled and black against the sky, rows and rows of ashen trunks and branches.

A few shriveled black leaves are wilting from a few branches, and amazingly enough, there are still an entire crop of black, burned apples still hanging in dead spindles of the trees, casting sillhouettes against the sun as Danny stares.

His elbow is over his mouth and nose as he approaches, not wanting to breathe in either the fog of smoke or the rotting flesh smell, but he knows steve will still hear him.

“All I see is a bunch of dead trees and what..ah... used to be apples.” He turns back and shoots the alpha a look and Steve rubs his finger tips across his brow in response, sighing heavily, so Danny just starts walking closer. "Where is that smell coming from?"

“Danny,” Steve pleads, but the omega ignores him.

“Oh c'mon Steve, I worked homicide in Jersey,” Danny yells in annoyance, because really what has gotten into the alpha. “I think I can handle a bunch of dead fruit. I mean, I love trees as much as the next guy, but the sight of a burned apple tree isn’t going to send me into some...”

And then he stops because something glints gold near one of the trunks of the trees closest to him and catches his attention.

But when he looks closer at this weird break in the pattern of the ashen bark, he realizes that something looks like it was carved into a huge portion of the lower half of the tree.

All of the trees actually.

  
Almost like, a totem pole, really, which is odd because these don’t look like animal faces in the tree trunks.

“Kono,” Steve radios, behind him.

Danny leans closer, still covering his mouth and nose, because God the stench is enough to send his stomach reeling.

He can make out the carving of multiple faces in a recessed surface cut into the wood, a perfect black layer of charred ash over all of it, making the carving one, uniform vision of matte black soot, except for one glint of gold to the side of one of the faces.

At first Danny thinks its a nail that’s been hammered into the wood of the tree, or maybe a piece of the chisel that broke off in the carving process.

But it’s not.

Danny freezes, his entire body going still as he realizes why Steve is asking kono to send all available medical examiners and coroners to this field west of the barn, why he’s yelling that they need to make sure not a single fucking news camera makes it onto the property... and realizes why the scent of burned wood and charred flesh are making so completely in the air.

Because that’s not a nail, it’s an earring, and these heads, they aren’t just carvings in the wood.

These are actual heads in the wood.

Danny reels back so fast he almost falls backward into the still smoldering soil.

But his alpha -- still radioing the unit-- catches the top strap on the back of Danny’s tac vest like a handle between his shoulders and holds him steady, lifting him up onto his feet.

When Steve leaves his hand on the strap across his back to hold Danny close, the omega doesn’t protest... until he feels the humiliating urge to turn into Steve's chest, mark himself on the alpha glands under his jaw, and expose his own neck because he's so fucking confused and unnerved.

Not going to happen.

Danny shoves away Steve's hand, clearing his throat, and looks away toward the blazing hot sky until the urge passes, leaving an itch in his spine.

It does nothing to distract him from the fact that someone has fucking carved a hollow cavity into all of these trees and placed human heads, dozens of them, into the hollow of the trunks like totem poles.

Someone stacked them from the ground up, like it took time to do this, took precision and intention to pose each head so that it was looking out of the surface of the tree trunk, one on top of the other.

In between grunts of fucking anger that someone would do this, Danny accidentally lets loose the beginnings of a howl, clapping a hand over his mouth to stifle it.

“Jesus,” Steve suddenly pleads in a snarl, because omega howls of distress -- meant to call for help -- are unbearable, and physically painful for an alpha to hear.

The omega glares at him quickly. "I can't help it any more than you can help your reaction to it."

  
"I'd just rather not be feral for the rest of the day, Daniel," the alpha snaps.

They stand there in silence for a few minutes, listening to the eerie rustle of the wind in the old sugarcane plants.

It sounds like whispers, right behind them, and it irks Danny's omega brain.

He rubs the back of his neck, staring at the orchard, and neither of them particularly wants to get any closer.

Steve breaks the silence first. "We need to wait for the photographers, get this place taped off," the alpha sighs. "Then start trying to bag the heads without losing too much of the tissue getting them out of the tree."

"I'm sure everything's pretty much fused together at this point," blonde shakes his head, glancing back at the orchard and -- no, he's done for today. He's seen enough of the evil of the world to meet his daily tolerance, and resolutely turns away from the field, kicking at a scorched clod of earth. "I need a drink."

Steve turns to stare at him in surprise, and the omega rolls his eyes.

"I said I need one, not that I'm going to. Calm down, Papa Bear," the omega grumbles, but his hand is gently rubbing the round swell of his belly and he glances down. "I would never. You know I wouldn't."

Danny's bump pulls against the lowest buttons on his shirts now, and it's only a matter of time before he gets big enough to start stealing Steve's clothes.

When Danny sighs, dropping his hand as he turns to scan the tree line for the approaching techs, Steve still stares at the bump, because, dammit, he wants to touch it too.

But Danny gets uncomfortable if he touches him there, and the alpha considers that it may be that he's still trying to get used to the idea of the babies himself.

But that bump isn't just a bump. It's his babies, two tiny growing little things that Danny's keeping safe, healthy, and warm, and you would never know just by staring at the handsome, crime-hardened blonde.

Danny looks up in surprise from his watch with his brows raised because he's definitely caught Steve gawking at his belly.  
  
"Babe, we've gotta work," he urges quietly, and yeah, Steve nods, Danny's right.

He's right.

Victims.

Death.

And this disgusting nightmare that they've got to document and piece apart.

The alpha rubs at his brow, trying to get his head back in the game before he looks up at the approaching field crew.

"Alright guys," he yells to the beta crew, "Let's get as much done in the daylight as we can! It's 2:00 pm. That gives us less than five hours to collect and bag evidence of at least two dozen burned vics," he orders, and the betas slowly nod.

He glances over at Danny who's tiredly fanning his shirt collar in the scorching heat.

This would be a long day for him even in normal circumstances; but it might be too long of a day for an omega carrying pups. -- especially if all he ate was a bagel.

But this case needs to be done right -- with all of his focus and attention -- for the victims.

"Generators and field lights won't get here until 9:00 pm. And before then, I want a perimeter, and heavy photo flow of everything before we break anything down tonight! Get to it."

  
xxxx

Steve tells Danny three times to take to Camarro and head home without him, but the blonde tells him to fuck off three times in response.

xxxx

Danny is slowing down after a few more hours in the blazing heat, pausing more than usual to wipe sweat off his brow, and finally even unbuttons the top few buttons of his shirt, fanning himself with a map of the area around the farm.

"Nice wax job," Kono winks at him playfully when she catches sight of his smooth, hairless chest.

"Acute onset of alopecia," Danny grumbles with a fatigued sigh. "It's a thing -- Google it."

Kono pauses regarding him for a second; he's drenched in sweat. "Are you feeling alright, brah?"

"Huh?" Danny rubs at his brow, looking at her with a perplexed expression. "Oh. I'm uh... I'm fine. It's just hot. And how are you wearing all black -- aren't you boiling in that?"

"Not really, honestly." She frowns. "You don't look so good."

"Of course not. I mean Jesus it has to be at least 101 today, right? 110 Celsius -- er Fahrenheit...451 or something. I just..."

Kono's eyes widen. "Let's get you in the shade, dude, you're not making any sense." She grabs his arm, gently leading him out of the sun to the shade of a nearby tree -- one that's thankfully not burned, and tries to get him to sit down.

"Huh?" He blinks slowly, rubbing more sweat out of his eyes and swallowing dryly. "I'm fine, I'm good --I just don't like this.. Tropic... ah... tropical...near the equation."

"The equator?" Kono frowns, fumbling with the radio on her hip so she can get a medic out here to check him over.

But before she can twist the thing out of her hip holster, Danny wavers on his feet. "Woah-- hey, hey! Danny!"  
She grabs hold of his shirt to try and keep him upright but he's at least sixty pounds heavier than her thin frame. They slump to the ground and Kono bites her lip in pain when all of Danny's weight falls on one of her thighs.

Steve is there suddenly, and the alpha instantly lifts Danny off of her, gently settling him down in the dried brown grass. "Kono -- you okay?" He calls over his shoulder until he's standing there, offering out a hand to help her up.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she waves him off. "Just help Danny."

Her fellow beta is out cold as Steve radios for Max -- the only one between the crew with medical knowledge.

Kono rushes forward to try to gently wake Danny up as Chin appears quickly with a bottle of water.

Her cousin gently pours water over Danny's neck, forehead, and chest while Kono lifts up his button down to shield him for the sun.

Steve shivers suddenly, as if something has irked him, and by the second bottle of water, their Alpha outright whines.

Chin blinks and looks up at him in surprise, and Steve awkwardly clears his throat to play it off.

Kono tries to ignore the fact that she's never heard their boss whine as she starts to brush Danny's plastered wet hair away from his face. "Did you call 911?" She asks her cousin quickly.

"No," Steve interrupts with a growl. "No medics. Please."

"But Ste--"

"I said no medics," he says gruffly, and she feels an uncomfortable twinge down her neck and spine compelling her to obey.

xxxx

  
When Max finally appears with his medical instrument bag, panting from sprinting, Steve thanks Kono and Chin and then ushers the two betas to return to the rest of the crew.

Steve is pouring another water bottle over his mate's chest and face, nervously glancing down at Danny's only recently showing belly.

He wants to put a hand on it -- his hand is literally clenching -- and he's caught himself palming Danny's stomach anxiously three times in the last two minutes. He finally decides that there's something in the air here that's fucking with his head, because he starts to develop a searing migraine.

"Commander McGarret, may I administer aid to Detective Williams?" He asks wearily, paused with his stethoscope.

"Yes! Max!" He gestures to Danny's prone form in exasperation, making it clear that the he needs to get on with it.

"Sorry, it's just that your fangs are exposed," he raises his brows and Steve frowns pulling a hand up to feel at his teeth.

He cuts his fingertip on one of his own fangs.

"Oh Fuck," he mutters, trying to will them away but he can't, he's too stressed and his head feels like his skull is about to split apart.

"His pulse is fine," he says quietly, listening as he glances at his watch to keep measure of a minute.

"And?"

"His pupils are responsive, his gums are pink, he's breathing fine, and his heart is beating regularly."

"I believe Detective Williams has merely fainted. He does not appear to be suffering heat stroke, although it is indeed very hot out here and he is fairly dehydrated."

Steve sighs in relief. "He fainted?"

Max purses his lips, calmly glancing down at Danny's shirtless body studying him for a moment. "It is relatively common for an omega to faint during pregnancy."

Steve's eyes almost bulge out of his face in the expression of sheer panic he gives the forensic examiner in response. "Max."

"Surely you knew he is expecting pups, commander... You should be able to smell the new pheromone signatures by now." He cocks his head, and Steve is sputtering.

"Max, did he -- did he tell you?"

"He did not," Max shrugs casually. "However, Commander, it is easy to infer that he is carrying pups: hair loss on the torso, darker areolar tissue, symmetrical bruises near the hips from the pelvic bowl expanding to accommodate a womb, and, finally, the particularly round swelling of his lower abdomen that you keep attempting to place your palm on..."

Steve blushes and removes his hand like it's been burned.

Max goes to put a stethoscope on Danny's belly and Steve catches himself baring his teeth. He stands up and shakes the thoughts out of his mind.

He's not about to start losing himself to every misguided alpha urge that flares up from his instincts.

"I apologize, Max," Steve pinches the bridge of his nose. "Just do me a favor and step away."

"You are reacting to your partner's stress hormones," Max says calmly as he nods and stands.

"Is that what that is?" Steve hisses, rubbing his forehead in pain.

Max nods, standing up with his medical bag. "I would suggest taking him home to his nest before he becomes more stressed when he wakes. A feral blackout would help neither the investigation nor the delicate situation you are being forced to conceal."

Steve rounds on him gruffly. "You need to keep this under wraps, Max, or you WILL see me go feral. Do you understand? THRESH will take Danny away to a research compound -- pregnant or not-- and I can't let that happen."  
  
"I will not reveal his condition, or his subgender, to anyone," Max bows slightly.  
There's a firm expression of his intent set in his dark eyes, and Steve nods in gratitude.

In one swooping action, he gathers Danny up in his arms and starts to walk to the car across the farm.

The omega stirs slightly in his arms, grumpily shoving a clawed hand at him in confusion with a half lucid hiss. "'Thefuggeryoudoin?" he slurs.

"You're fine, Danno, you're okay. We're just going home," he sighs, glancing down at his trusting blue eyes before they roll back. "I'm sorry I let this happen," Steve sighs, but Danny's out once more.

The crew is staring.

Every single pair of eyes is on him and his mate, and, fuck, this isn't good.

Somewhere one of the female techs says "awwww," and there's a cloud of beta female arousal in the air at his impressive display of strength or chivalry or whatever Disney fantasy they're dreaming up. Steve rolls his eyes and pointedly glances back at Max.

"Max, explain about Danny's heat stroke, please."

  
He hears the beta agree while Someone rushes to open the camarro door so Steve can set Danny down in the passenger seat, taking a moment to buckle him in, and fuck it earns another "awwww" from this stupid fucking gaggle of nosy fucking people.

"Get back to work, all of you. We're losing daylight," he yells as he slams the door shut and all but sprints to the drivers side.

So much for being inconspicuous he thinks as he cant help but speed the hell away from the onlookers; his skin may be stained red permanently from this ridiculous fucking blush.

xxxxx

Danny wakes up the next morning in a warm bed.

  
He's apparently been scrubbed clean because he doesn't smell like that dusty stench of regret that was haunting Northamer farm, and Steve has tugged a soft navy t-shirt and pajama pants onto him.

Huh.

Something warm and fluffy swells in his chest, but he's going to convince himself that that's just heartburn while he starts to rummage around for his phone to check how much time he has left until work.

"Oh fuck," he mutters when he sees the time.

Work started two hours ago.

xxxxx

 

A car horn startles Steve bad enough that he nearly drops the iPad provided to Five-0 by the governor, but he manages to snag it on its way down with his quick reflexes.

Granted, yes, he was standing in the middle of the dusty dirt road when the car drove up. However, the task force crew is trained especially in dealing with alphas, and startling the hell out of one is definitely against proper procedure.

Apparently, Steve is the only one worried that he could go feral and claw someone’s face up if he loses control, and the thought makes him sigh in disbelief, shaking his head.

“McGarrett,” calls the mayor from the tablet’s speakers.

Steve’s accidentally been giving him a view of his muddy commando boots for almost a minute.

“Sorry about that. Sir, as you can see, the scene’s still pretty hot with the crew; I don’t think they’re going to be finished before dark, so I’m had generators brought in with perimeter lights from the base last night.”

“It sounds like you understand how important it is that we document and bag this crime scene as quickly as possible, then,” the mayor says gruffly.

“Affirmative. The trails on nearby peaks have been closed, the helicopter tours have been grounded, and there are roadblocks on every road leading up here, sir,” Steve explains, trying to keep himself from pacing but he can’t.

“Inconspicuously I hope?”

“Uh, yes sir,” Steve quips automatically. “Said it was uh...”

He wants to go home.

He needs. To go home. To his mate. To Danny.

It’s a sickening fever that’s consuming him slowly, fraying him at the edges, and Steve knows it’s fucking ridiculous... but he can’t help it.

“What?”

The alpha shakes his head free of the uneasy ache. “Sorry, uh, bad connection here,” Steve lies, “They released a statement saying it was volcanic gas vents. Toxic fumes.”

The mayor mulls over this for a second, looking beyond the camera at something.

“You can be assured that I don’t like lying to the people of Hawaii, but I don’t like inciting a panic over a gruesome multiple homicide that will hinder the tourist season, either...” he trails off, clearing his throat.

"I'm pretty sure lying to protect Hawaii from a serial killer by not allowing the media to shower the freak with media attention is not going to get in the way of your re-election, Sir."

“Hurting my reputation, McGarrett, I can live with. Hurting the reputation of Hawaii as a safe vacation destination? I can’t live with that. The economy can’t live with that. We can’t release any info about this until we at least have a few leads.”

“Yes sir, I understand sir,” Steve nods, because it sounds like the mayor just made a good point about somethinr, but all Steve hears is the burning current of Danny. Mate. Pups. Nest. Danny. Vulnerable. and he can barely keep his thoughts straight. He wishes he were speaking on a cellphone because he’s so not above blowing into the microphone to fake the sound of static and ‘accidentally’ drop the call, but the video feed is making him wait a lot more patiently than he feels he is able to.

The mayor finally says he’s going to let him go, says that he’s got to go prepare a statement in case anything leaks to the media.

But not before asking one more question.

“Commander McGarret,” he glances at the screen curiously, “Where’s your other half? Detective Williams?”

“Ah...” Steve pauses; he had decided last night, running a gentle hand up and down the back of his soundly sleeping omega, that Danny needed to take it easy until they could find a doctor to monitor the health of their pups. “His knee’s been acting up -- an old injury. He had to take it easy today, stay off his feet and all...”

Steve is the worst liar and he swears the governor gives him a look for a few seconds before a sigh escapes the tablet speakers. “I need you and your boy on this case like white on rice, McGarret. So set him up with Tylenol, an ice bath, or sacrifice a chicken over that knee with a goddamned voodoo ritual -- whatever; get him straightened out and soon. If he's not out here with you then he can at least be directing the research department back at HQ."

“I understand, sir.”

“Good. Because you two are the best I've got and I need you both eating, sleeping and breathing this case ‘round the clock until it’s solved. If this sicko killer pulls another stunt like this, the world's vision of Hawaii as paradise is up in flames. And you can bet that, in a few months, there’ll be a lot more hurting in the state of Hawaii than Danny’s bad knee.”

The subtle jibe at his mate makes Steve glare dangerously at the screen. All he can manage is a curt nod.

Because the man basically just pinned the fate of the state’s economy on Steve and his already stressed-out, pregnant mate.

When the Governor dismisses him, Steve growls in frustration until he realizes that one of the forensic specialists, Pamela Logan, is asking him a question -- in one of her hands there is a plastic burned head in clear plastic bag, but the alpha can smell every singed bit of flesh and hair. It makes him clench his jaw in disgust.

“What’d you find?” Steve asks her. She looks back at him with a haunted, hesitant expression.

“I found a good reason to call in a criminal psychologist from the university,” the beta retorts grimly. “This was hanging in one of the trees toward the back,” she holds up a second bag, a smaller clear bag, and there’s a nasty mess of red blood and stringy tissue in it. “I’m just... this isn’t like anything we’ve ever dealt with before, commander... ”

The alpha frowns, reaching for the bag slowly, but he already has a terrible feeling about this.“What ah...what am I looking at, Logan?”

She sighs; “I'm no expert at fetal development, sir, but I think what we've got here...is human and it was about five months into gestation.”

The seal stares, and something clenches around his heart, unsettling his stomach with revulsion.

“Damn,” he whispers, taking the bag and staring closer.

He can make out two minuscule arms, and feet with tiny toes. He thinks of how innocent and fragile this tiny pup was.

God.

Before he can spot the enlarged head of the tiny, barely formed thing, he shoves the bag back at Logan and walks --staggers-- a few steps toward the tree line, hands on his knees because Holy fuck.

There’s a searing ache in the bottom of his chest, and he gags quietly a few times before he can get his body under control.

With his head in his hands, Steve can’t stop his brain from imagining someone doing this to his own pups; gutting Danny open -- christ, maybe even while he’s alive, watching, screaming as his pups are...

He grits his teeth against the deep, forlorn sound that almost escapes his chest. It feels like he’s been wounded.

Maybe he has been.

“They’re gonna test the bone marrow of all the victims,” the examiner calls out as she awkwardly stares at anything but the seal -- it must be disconcerting to see an alpha succumbing to emotion like this. "The fetal remains in the tree flag this as a subgender aggression case; we should catalogue all of the bodies' gender identities now. See if any of the other victims were mated, bonded, carriers, you know? Might be a trend.”

“Oh?” He huffs, but he’s blindly nodding to what she’s saying.

He remembers that she’s watching and he straightens up, clearing his throat as he shakes off the cold sweat.

He didn’t sign up for this shit.

Strap grenades to his chest, let him lead a raid straight into an enemy base -- give him the worst odds possible of saving the day, and he won’t even blink until they’re handing him a medal.

But this.

This.

He has fucking sorely underestimated how much this whole mate and pups thing would affect him.

And there is no way in hell he's letting Danny work this case, regardless of what the Governor is demanding.

**** 

  


xxxxx

Steve drives home a little bit earlier than usual because Danny has stopped answering his texts hours ago, and Steve thinks for a moment that he should have picked up Malasadas on the way home as a peace offering.

But as he pulls into his street, Steve sees a van in the driveway. For a brief angry moment, the alpha clenches his jaws and growls, because he mistakes the van for a cabbie.

As he pulls closer in his blue pick up truck, however, he realizes that the vehicle is marked with something on the side -- a logo.

He edges closer squinting, until his eyes widen in horror, because Steve realizes that the word T.H.R.E.S.H. is painted on the side of the van in huge, bold green letters.

"Oh fuck," Steve breathes, pulling to a stop as he twists his hands on the leather steering wheel. "Danny..."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys are enjoying the story; lol, Steve's clearly not. THRESH finally invades the McGarret-Williams home! Oh no ;'(
> 
>  
> 
> **I need to do a reader comment poll: What did y'all think of the text message screen caps?**
> 
>  
> 
> I really can't stand trying to type texts and I found a way to make the graphics pretty easily. Texts have become a large part of relationship dynamics these days, and, for me at least, it makes the characters more believable if they're texting as well as talking via phone/radio/email. 
> 
> If you guys like it, then I have more tricks up my sleeve. If you prefer typed out content, I shall stick to the good old Arial 11 pt or whatever this is.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a rather small update :-L 
> 
> I just couldn't live with myself leaving that cliff hanger up anymore, lol.

"Oh fuck. _Danny_..." A concerned whine hisses from the back of Steve's throat as he searches the windows for any sight of people.

With his stomach in knots, he walks up to his front door, which is alarmingly wide open, and then steps inside.

"Excuse me -- who the hell is in my house?"

A woman with a wide face and pale blue eyes leans back from behind a wall in a white medical grade decontaminant suit, blinking owlishly at him in surprise before calling loudly to whomever else has broken into his home.

"The Alpha's home!"

"The Alpha's name is Lieutenant Commander Steven McGarret, Ex Navy Seal, and he'd appreciate some answers right now!" Steve snarls, and a few similarly dressed people start to appear in his living room.

"Mr. McGarret -- "

He shakes his head and holds the door wide open. "Get out. We talk outside. You know anything about subgendered humans then you should know that breaking into my home is a huge offense to me."

And by offense, Steve means that he's actively experiencing the urge to kill, tear, and strangle.

A thin balding man with dark, hooded eyes shoves out a paper toward his face. "Here's our warrant, so you'll have to manage. We discovered probable cause of your aiding and abetting a fugitive, unregistered omega when you ordered a nest bed yesterday. A bed designed for a family dynamic to which omegas and or omega pups are both intrinsic and inherent."

Steve throws his hands up, livid. "Save me the academic vernacular, okay? Let's speak English here, because I think you can manage that."

"We have good reason to believe you're hiding an unregistered omega and possibly omega pups in your home," the moon faced woman clarifies sternly with a hand on her hip. "There's no other logical reason for your purchase."

Steve makes a show of looking around but fucking prays he doesn't see his mate, who's either hiding or has left the house. "And did you find one -- an omega? When you invaded my home on a hunch?""

The woman purses her lips. "Mr. McGarrett, If you've mated and bred an omega, then you're required by law to present him or her for a biological examination and full physical, as well as national registration and identifying UV tattoo behind the ear."

"Do you even hear yourselves?" Steve mutters under his breath. Because this sounds dangerously close to 'rounding them up.' "Do you do this a lot? Raid random homes for other extinct things like Tazmanian Tigers or Black Rhinos?"

"I highly doubt that that nest bed is for a single alpha male," the tall thin man retorts, folding his arms.

"Maybe I think a round bed would flow better with the design of my house. I don't think speculation is probable cause, and if I find one inkling of an exaggeration in that warrant, I'm going straight to the district attorney with this," Steve seethes.

The woman dead pans. "Speculation was flagging you in our system four months ago for suspicious search queries and emails about omegas, McGarrett. Your purchase of an omegan nest bed was a confirmation."

Steve bites down on the inside of his cheek.  
"I have no idea what you're talking about, and I don't care to hear your half baked attempt at an explanation. Get out of my house."

"We're just wrapping up here, conveniently for you. But the next red flag we get from the system about you is going to give us the right to submit you for hormone testing for an omega bond verification, and the law is going to throw the book at you faster than you can try to pull strings to get around it." The thin man leans into his face.

Steve bares his teeth. "Maybe you should take a look in that book --I don't think you know much about alpha law. I have the right to physically attack you for provoking me in my den."

"You're right." The moon faced woman gives him a sickening sweet smile, "But only if you admit that you're a nesting alpha, which we both know you are or you wouldn't need a nest bed."

"I said get out," Steve snarls, and his fangs pop in his mouth as he bares his teeth.

She gives him a smug once over, clearly u phased. "Such a protective Daddy Alpha... Particularly touchy. The pups must be pretty small, then. Newborns, or maybe not even born yet."

"He's probably got a pregnant mate hiding somewhere nearby. But your hands are tied, aren't they -- if you attack anyone from the facility, you'd have to offer up your little bitch-to-be as proof to claim the provoked alpha defense which means..." She looks at her colleague.

"It means we would still have research rights to the omega -- and any of his or her offspring -- in the end anyway," the thin man turns over his shoulder, studying his reaction carefully.

Steve feels his muscles tense at the threat to his pups. The man notices.

With every ounce of control he garnered from the Navy, the alpha swings the front door wide and calmly gestures for them one last time to get out. But he can't stop the low growl from reverberating through the room from his chest.

And maybe they do actually understand that they're all about to get their throats bitten out, because start picking up the pace.

As soon as they pull out of the driveway, Steve starts to run through the house, calling for his mate, until he finally gets to the garage. Steve notices the smudges in the dusty cover of his father's old car, and frowns; he hasn't worked on the car in months.

Suddenly, Steve knows exactly where his mate is hiding.

"Danny," Steve calls out. "Danny, it's okay it's just me, it's Steve."

Steve coughs, waving away a cloud of dust, while he wrenches the grey cover away from the back door of the car, and swings open the creaky door.

Danny is pressed against the other door, away from him, and the omega is borderline feral. He's crouching down with his claws and fangs glinting in the dim light, panting in distress as stares up at Steve with wide eyes.

"Danny," Steve gasps. "Oh god, babe, I'm so sorry!"

"You fucking left me here!" The blonde snarls and springs out of the back seat like a lion, grabbing onto his black tee shirt near his neck and yanking him down to eye level. "You left me trapped with no way to leave and those fucking people showed up, and they wanted t-to--"

He's red faced and shaking when Steve quickly moves in closer; Danny tries to claw at him, tries to knee him hard and Steve scrambles back a step.

"They would've taken me, Jesus fucking Christ, you wouldn't have known where I even went!" His fangs glint white in his mouth.

"Danny, babe, I'm sorry -- it's okay! They're gone! Calm down!" He tries to grab him, to just fucking hold him still for a second.

Danny pulls back and screams at him, eyes red and steaming. "DON'T YOU FUCKING LEAVE ME STRANDED LIKE THAT AGAIN!"

Steve's heart splits in half from the weight of the guilt settling onto him, and he grabs Danny's shoulders, leaning to envelope his small frame with his huge arms. He's never seen Danny this unhinged in his life. "Stop, Danny. Just stop."  
  
"Me stop? You stop! I get winded going up the fucking stairs lately, so I couldn't run for it, Steven! My gun and my badge, and my wallet are locked in the Camarro, which I didn't have. Look at me -- I couldn't even jump a fence like this, either, because I'm too pup heavy now!"

"Danny, shhhhhh, calm d--"

"You shush me one more time, Steven, just try it, and I swear to GOD I'm gonna give you a fat lip," Danny snarls, still panting.

The alpha clutches him tightly, marking him with his scent glands under the corners of his jaw, and holds him tight while the omega rages against him.

He starts to tire out, his snarling tapering off, and Steve watches Danny start to lose momentum until he stops shivering. "That's it. Just slow down, buddy. You're fine."

He runs a hand over the top of his head, lowering it to rub at his shoulders and suddenly the blonde is slumping into him sullenly.

For a few minutes Steve just holds him there in the garage, surrounded by old rusted tools and dust sifting through the late afternoon light. They're never going to tell anyone about this, so it's okay to hold him for a second more.

  
It's silent.

It's still.

"They're gone, Danny," Steve murmurs quietly, and the omega nods, breathing Steve in evenly as he looks around the empty garage.

A beat passes.

"I was out in the garage trying to fill that piece of junk with enough gas to get to work when I heard them pull up in the driveway...and I knew if I tried to run for it, they'd either dart me or tackle me, thinking I was you trying to evade them." He sighs, dropping a hand to his abdomen. "I was worried about the pups, so I just... hid. Like a coward."

"Hey," Steve jars him slightly, "you were being smart, Danny, like always. You evaluated your options and, in the end, you were thinking about our pups." His huge hand is rubbing Danny's arm up and down until it drifts down to the omega's belly where one of the alpha's thumbs slides gently under his tee shirt to rub over the taught, golden skin

The blonde detective shuts his eyes, leaning into him. "I think they were looking for evidence that you weren't living alone," Danny sighs.

Steve hums against him with a frown.

"I could hear them walking upstairs -- opening closets and the spare rooms -- but had just walked into the garage when you got home."

"Luckily there's not much evidence of another person here. I doubt they would've figured out that the khakis in the closet are two different sizes. Plus, you don't get mail at the house, and your personal stuff was all in the camarro..."

"Yeah but, babe, they could'a easily noticed two tooth brushes at the sink, and a bunch of blonde hair in the shower if they were looking close enough. I just don't know how badly they want to find an omega, ya know? But I feel like they could if they came back without warning."

Steve purses his lips because yeah, that's unfortunately a valid point.

Danny huffs a breath against him. "So I don't know if I should be panicking or not, but I'm starting to anyway."

"I don't know what they may have found today, babe, I do know that panicking isn't gonna help us."

"Easy for you to say Mr. I-roar-and-everybody-flops-on-their-back-to-submit," Danny mutters, sliding out of his embrace. "Sorry. Alright, I'm good. Get off me. I just--I think I need to recover from the THRESH fiasco for a bit."

He walks upstairs to their bedroom, and Steve follows behind him, finally feeling the onset of guilt. He had tried to control Danny's decisions today. He had tried to control Danny, his partner and his best friend, and look what happened.

Danny had almost gotten taken away from him, and had proved in the process that -- when push came to shove-- Danny had listened to his instincts and had put the pups first when he had a chance to run, fight, or hide.

Steve crosses his arms, leaning in the door frame as he watches Danny pace around the room. The alpha knows that choosing to hide would have been a hard move to make for a hothead, larger than life cop like Danny.

The blond is pacing around with his hands on his elbows for a moment, and the alpha Steve regards him silently, eyes falling to the gentle swell of his mate's rounding belly. He's afraid to interrupt anything Danny might be doing to make himself feel better so he says nothing.

The omega sits on to the bed, scooting back slightly and pulling his legs up, looking up at his alpha expectantly.

He waves out with one hand, tentatively gesturing to the edges of the bed. "Can you... Ah...Just because I don't... Omegas don't usually... It's not the same if _I_ make it."

Steve nods. "I've got you, babe," the alpha exhales with gentle understanding. CWithout a word, he starts to move and twist the blankets around the edge of the bed. He adds a few extra pillows from the linen closet, and even a few of his well worn hoodies that smell like him, because it just feels right.

"I bought a real one of these, you know? A real nest bed."

"Yeah, I know. And I spent two and a half hours cramped in a car with a dead phone because THRESH knows too."

Steve shakes his head; "I had no idea they could track my Amazon account."

"Hmm," Danny huffs a reply, pulling a few pillows closer.

"Danny, look -- about today. I'm sorry," Steve says finally, but the apology hangs there in the silence because the omega ignores him.

"Turn the lights off on the way out," Danny mumbles, curling a hand over his stomach to palm the side of it. He starts to rub a gentle circle where one of their pups is probably restless, and then the omega finally shuts his eyes.

"Danny?"

"You're on the couch until further notice. Pending review."

Steve clenches his jaw, watching Danny snuggle comfortably into the nest, the one that he built no less, and feels a fucking pang of longing like a wilting character out of some ridiculous after-school special.  
He wants to be there, in the stupid _nest_ thing, WITH Danny.

He wants it so bad that it hurts.

Christ. How did he get so wrapped up in these fucking instincts?

He debates arguing, but nods, walking down out of the master bedroom, past the guest bedroom that's full of boxes of his father's old stuff, and heads downstairs to scrounge for a cold beer.

The alpha huffs, sulking in the corners of his mind, but he thinks of how Danny must've felt, seeing the THRESH vehicle pulling into the driveway....

He vows silently, slumping down in a hard kitchen chair with his chilled Longboard, that he's never going to allow anything like this to happen again.

He's going to stay close to Danny, for better or worse, until the pups are born, even if it means they have track down a serial killer together at Five-0. And at the thought of that...

"Jesus." Steve runs a hand up over his forehead and toward the back of his neck. He doesn't even want to think about it.

  
His phone buzzes to alert him of a voicemail, and he pauses with dread, fishing it out of his pocket. Even though Steve already knows what it's going to say, he presses the button for the speaker and slaps his phone on the table.

The volume is cut low, in case Danny is still up, but he can feel in the alpha edges of his instincts, somehow, that his mate is warm, safe, and fast asleep in the nest.

Which is why it hurts him to hear the message -- all thirty two of the victims, so far, are omegas. Just like Danny.

He downs too much of his beer in one swig, clenching his eyes shut.

Because most of them had been carrying pups, too.

 _Just like Danny_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Law school is really difficult, and it's rough emotionally, too.
> 
> Comments always brighten my day, though :D so leave me a shout out if you like this universe!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well for anyone who didn't think there was enough kink in this story, *ahem* think again. 
> 
> NOTE: this chapter contains graphic sexual imagery and now I need a cigarette and a drink andlikeabibleorsomething because, good lord, somewhere... the nuns are a cryin'.

* * *

 

 After a relaxing weekend binging on Netflix and ordering in, Danny seems to be less jumpy in the house, and the alpha is no longer banned from the nest bed. Steve doesn't point out the fact that he has literally restrained himself from opening any of the doors to the outside for the last 48 hours only in an attempt to make Danny feel comfortable in his den again. 

**xxxxxx**

He wakes up and rolls over to kiss the slumbering blonde's forehead at 7:00 AM in the first, fresh new hours of the lazy Sunday at the end of their equally lazy weekend. 

Danny is curled tightly in a mess of pillows, and Steve slowly starts to straighten him out before he gets a sore neck. The blonde murmurs something to him about letting him sleep and paws away his hands. 

Grinning, Steve leans to kiss his mate's stomach, feeling a small rush of movement beneath the surface. Humming softly against the skin, he's rewarded with a little kick, and then, much less pleasantly, a fucking pillow that slams down on his head. 

"What the--" 

"I'm gonna _kill_ you!" Danny snarls. "You woke them up! FYI, you jerk, I'm carrying the spawn of a navy SEAL. And apparently, part of the training is 'torture the one that keeps you alive,' because they were awake from midnight to four in the fucking morning and _so help me_ God Steven if you don't--" 

Steve holds up his hands in surrender when Danny cocks and aims another medium goosefeather down pillow at him. "I'm going! I'm going."

With that, and an exasperated look, Steve slinks out of the room and heads down to make coffee and text Joe White.

They're supposed to meet today to look at NAVY issue locks, security systems, signal scramblers, and wiretap detectors. Whatever catalogue Joe can whip up for him is going to be like Easter Morning for a napalm junkie like himself.

**xxxxx**

Joe suggests that they meet for lunch later that day at Kamekona's, and Danny slumps low in his seat until Steve can convince him that they aren't being followed there.

The older alpha at least has the sense to only hug Steve and not Danny when he subtly congratulates them both. He gives Danny a firmly affectionate two handed handshake instead.

After the THRESH fiasco, which the older alpha must know about, Danny suddenly isn't keen on being touched by anyone but Steve, and the omega appreciates that this hard-ass military man is actually pandering to his hormonal nonsense by not trying to hug him.

Joe has a half finished Longboard beer in one hand as they sit around a picnic table, and he slides another beer to the other alpha, raising his brows in apology at Danny who waves him off.

"Raincheck," Danny laughs.

 "Four month rain check." When Steve's warm arm falls across the top of his back, he leans slightly toward him, exhaling slowly.

It feels easy, suddenly.

Like they're not both scrambling to meet career expectations and prepare for pups and hide an unexpected pregnancy all at once, but that illusion, however seductive, _is_ just an illusion.

So when Kamekona comes over to tease Danny for ordering "too much food for such a compact guy" the jersey detective snaps something about shutting him down with a health code violation through a mouthful of shrimp scampi.

Steve rolls his eyes and turns to Joe and leans in to speak candidly.

Danny watches him from the corner of his eye, really not wanting to get involved in whatever they're trying to acquire.

The last time Steve ordered something remotely omega related, Danny almost got picked up by the registry.  
So if they're going to purchase something more telling than a mattress, like pup formula or a multiples crib, Danny thinks wearily, God knows where it's going to come from. He doesn't want to know that his pups crib was stolen off of a truck headed for Macy's by three navy seals with tear gas and a flash grenade. That would put a damper on his whole 'new dad' experience.

The only thing he does want to know is when to conveniently not be home when THRESH decides to kick down his front door again. Danny thinks wryly, sucking garlic butter off his ring fingertip before frowning.

The pups are squirming around in him enough to nauseate him and he regrets the third helping of scampi. Grumbling to himself, the detective puts his head down on his arms. Steve glances over at him in fleeting concern when Danny shifts awkwardly on the picnic table bench. He tightens his stomach muscles and a desperate attempt to will them to stop until he's been able to digest at least some of that food. The pups are not having it, though, and the babies decide to torture him by kicking at his bladder.

Danny gives up, not wanting to rub at his belly in public, and a faint whine slips past his lips when he sighs.

"Too much garlic?" A comforting hand settles on his shoulder, palming across his upper back reassuringly.

"Too much post-lunch MMA cage fighting," he mutters. "And I'm the fucking cage."

Joe shakes his head in disbelief. "I never thought I'd meet another one of you guys, Danny," Joe says to himself, glancing over at the detective, and Steve just beams proudly. "It's kind of an honor."

It's so sweet that it's almost annoying, Danny thinks, huffing against his skin. "Yeah... Living the dream over here. Let me tell you."

"How far along are you?" Joe asks, leaning to glance at his stomach under the table and Danny shifts awkwardly.

"Almost five months. But they're already moving."

Joe's eyes widen. "When did that start?!"

"When I was working out, actually, a while back," the blonde mutters, clearing his throat, because this is not a fun story. The omega then turns to stare at his mate as the ex navy seal smirks around the rim of a beer.

"The first time it happened was about two weeks ago. He fell othe pull up bar and shrieked," Steve chuckles, and Danny flushes red. "I -- at first-- thought he pulled a tendon, but he ah, kinda scampered into the nearest closet and slammed the door.  He's supposed to be claustrophobic, but the guy wouldn't come out for two hours!"

"I was SURPRISED." Danny shoves his hands into his pockets.

"Surprised? You acted like you were bit by a fuckin' rattle snake, I thought you were dying in there! I about shot the lock off, and here I come to find that a _blessed_ _event_ has occurred without me!"

Danny glares at him. "It was a lot okay? It was a lot to process... _emotionally_." He pauses, seething at him. "Emotions -- do you know what those are you hind brained lump of protein?" 

Joe is trying not to laugh. "Instinct told him to hightail it to a safe place, McGarrett. He doesn't have to explain to me." The older alpha turns apologetically to the omega, "I won't judge you, Danny."

Dannh nods pointedly at him. "Thank you, Joe. But, yes, they're moving and they're growing like little weeds, and if I had an actual doctor, I'd be able to ask how long I'm gonna be like this," he pauses, sighing. "Because I don't think I've got as much time as I think I do to get things ready."

Steve nearly chokes on his beer. "Wait, not a full nine months?" Danny wants to laugh because his brows have raised to high toward his hairline that they look like they're about to scuttle over his scalp and down his back toward freedom. Danny shrugs at him, shaking his head.

Steve nods, mulling the thought over as he nurses his beer, but he's grinning again by the time Joe points to something in doubted my dangerous and illegal on the page.

His eyes are a brilliant green against the early evening sky, and Danny pauses to stare appreciatively.

He notices the way the wind is gently blowing back Steve's dark hair, and the way the stunning sunset is casting his skin in gold and glinting off his brilliant white smile as he grins about something (probably grenades) and starts looking over a sort of inventory list with Joe (probably for grenades, again).

"Last time I saw someone lookin' at someone like dat, bruddah, guy was watchin' his girl gettin' on a plane at de end of Casablaca," a low voice teases him. Kamekona grabs up his empty paper trays, glancing down at him knowingly.

Danny straightens up, blushing and ow _goodGodfuckingfuck_ something tries to wedge up under his ribs at the movement.

He grimaces. "Just thinking of how much I hate him, actually; takes up a lot of my time."

"I don't think dat's it," he laughs to himself, "Hey-- Here's lookin' at you, kid. Right?" He laughs to himself at his own joke, making his way back slowly to the shrimp stand.

And somehow reverberating in the air is the fact that Kamekona knows the he and Steve are, like, a thing.

Did that just actually happen? Danny shakes his head incredulously and wishes it was that easy with everybody.

He can't keep lying to Kono and Chin about everything, about he and Steve, his true subgender, and the fact that this belly he's getting is definitely not from beer and pizza. But the more people that know, the more people that THRESH could send a summons to demanding a formal inquiry -- and then everyone he loved would be lying, too.

"Hey, Kamekona, can we get some more longboards over here?" Steve calls out, looking up from his list of papers. It startles him out of his spiral of stress.

"Anything for mah almost-best-customer."

"Almost best? We've eaten here five times in a week, more than once before." Danny squints at him, "Who the hell else could _possibly_ be your best customer?"

"Flippa."

The detective raises a brow. "Doesn't he work here?"

The big guy laughs. "Steel has to pay, brudduh. Only one who eats fo' free here is my Motha."

"But your mother's dead," Steve blurts.

"Which is good, cuz -- as you can imagine-- she don eat much." He waggles his brows at  
the three of them like he's made a genius point. The detective grins to himself, mentally deciding not to touch that one, laughing into his arms.

**xxxxx**

At work on Monday, it feels awkward for Danny to ride in with Steve and step into his normal routine: walking through the lab and pacing around the Five-0 mainframe, juggling research leads on who might've been involved at Northamer Farm, and chatting at the copy machine in the break room.

It feels weird, because all Danny can think about is how he hopes to God nobody notices that he's drinking decaf coffee, eating more of the stale pastries than he cares to admit, and has this godforsaken glow that he cannot scrub out of his skin. All he can think of is how only a few days before, he had been hiding -- trapped-- in that stupid heap of junk (albeit classic junk) as THRESH searched his entire house and left their fucking scent all over the place.  

A a couple people give him a sympathetic look (some fake some real), and a few others actually stop to ask him about the heat stroke. Little Lucy from the lab tells him to 'take it easy, Sir,' and really, that's sweet, but unnecessary.

kono tries repeatedly to ask him what happened, and Danny has to actually press the volume button on his desk phone to make it ring so he can pretend to answer it and get wrapped up in a very important call. 

Danny deserves a fucking Oscar. 

And maybe a Teen-choice award for 'worst friend,' because he's pretty sure he's earned that one a few times over.

The same text has been burning in his pocket for almost twenty minutes like a little blue-white glowing, vibrating ember of shame, because he hasn't had the balls to write back:

 

 

So instead he screencaps the conversation and decides to make Steve deal with it.

 

  **xxxxx**

 

The next evening, Steve finds a stash of mint Milano cookies.

Under the couch.

In a shoebox.

He thinks about moving it into the kitchen and hesitates, realizing that this might be some kind of nesting thing, and just shoves them back under the couch before he gets one of his fingers bitten off.

Unfortunately, Steve has to find a new spot, because he had been looking for somewhere to hide the case files about the lab tests. Steve had convinced the lab to keep the results between he and the governor, and not to inform the rest of the department. When in reality all he had been thinking of was sparing Danny the nightmares and more stress for the next few months, he had told the governor and the lab that they could use the fact that the victims had all been omegas -- and also that most of the omegas had been pregnant-- as a way to tell the truth from the lies. If any nut jobs  came forward, admitting involvement,  Steve would be able to sift through the confessions for anyone who actually knew the truth about the victims and the dead pups.

"This fuckin case," Steve sighs, thumbing open the file.

Besides the lab results, the folder contains the classified, graphic photos of mangled, tiny bodies, strung up in the branches of the dead trees in a sick, purposeful arrangement of death and decay and--

"Babe, where are those Bose headphones you bought me last year? Pups are freaking the hell out, and it's driving me nuts."

"That's a short drive," Steve calls out, trying to fake a smile but it doesn't reach his lips. He shoves the files in the couch cushions and stands up right as Danny rounds the corner from the stairs.

He has a light blue tee shirt on and dark blue, stretchy basketball shorts. This is his uniform lately, five o'clock shadow, hair a little unkempt, and the same worn out shorts that he's been stealing out of Steve's closet since he hit four months and the pups started growing so quickly.

"Why are they upset?" Steve asks quietly with a frown, walking up to his mate to sling an arm around his shoulders. He kisses the top corner of his forehead for a moment as he passes by toward the office upstairs.

A beat passes.

"I think they're upset because I'm upset," Danny grimaces finally, holding his stomach with both hands as his whole body physically winces.

Steve has absolutely no idea what that must feel like for Danny, but it doesn't look very pleasant at the moment. "What're you upset about?"

Steve reaches into a drawer and hands Danny a mess of wires and the headphones. The omega murmurs a thanks and responds under his breath as he walks out that there's "too many things to list."

The elephant in the room is, of course, the fact that Thresh probably has the house under surveillance.

Steve sighs, realizing why this is so unsettling to them both on a primal level.

  
Danny _still_ doesn't feel safe at the house.

**xxxxxxxx**

A week later, at three AM, in a nest that Steve put together quickly for the two of them after Danny was too stressed to eat dinner, Danny is restless and shivering next to him. The alpha blinks tiredly as he groggily registers the scent of distressed omega and pups before he's fully awake.

He lazily raises himself up off the bed to wrap his long arms around the Omega's torso to hug him close.

It's almost automatic.  
But Danny hisses in surprise, startling awake, and bites straight into Steve's bicep with his fangs.

"FUCK," Steve roars out in pain, shoving Danny away harshly with both hands because he's half awake and really, what in the actual fuck.

Danny yelps at the jarring movement and scrambles off the bed to the floor where he collapses in a tangled heap of sheets.

"YOU BIT ME," Steve snarls, walking toward the bathroom to hold a washcloth over the two fang marks. They're not very deep but they're jagged.

"Babe I'm sorry, I don't --" his eyes look red and steamy from fatigue and stress. "I don't know what happened, or why I would ever... Do that..."

"This is going to need stitches," Steve sighs, sitting on the edge of the tub.

When Danny comes in, Steve doesn't look up.

"The omega sits quietly next to him and exhales long and slow like defeat. Danny leans to rub his forehead under Steve's jaw, because he feels like absolute dirt for biting his own mate. The thought of hurting him on purpose is reeling his brain with a thousand varieties of guilt and self hatred and fear over having blatantly lost control.

At first, Steve refuses to move. But the acrid bite of distress is filling the bathroom along with the beginnings of his pregnant mate's whine of guilt.

He needs Steve to say that he forgives Danny, that he still loves him even after turning his life upside down, and that he understands that this pregnancy has more control of his instincts than Danny feels he ever personally had.

"It's okay, Danny," the alpha says finally, voice hoarse from sleep. Steve then leans his head back, exposing more of his neck so Danny can fully anoint himself in his Alpha scent. Rumbling a gentle hum of approval, despite the pain from the bite, Steve holds him close because he can feel Danny's claws as the omega tries to pull himself closer into his arms.

Steve doesn't say a word when he feels wet tears soaking into his bare shoulder.

He doesn't say a word because this is his mate's second breakdown in a week, and they both know it.

**xxxxxxxxxx**

By the time Danny hits five months exactly, he can't keep food down. He has to take his hormone pills twice some mornings because he keeps throwing them up.

Dark shadows under his eyes are haunting reminders of the fact that he hasn't slept in days, and his gaze is permanently red rimmed and glassy. His claws won't even retract anymore from the constant state of stress. His ribs start to show through his skin, and finally Steve calls Max to the house.

The beta hooks him up to an IV full of saline and dextrose, and says that unfortunately that's all he can do.

Danny is trying to stay awake long enough to stay present, but he's exhausted from vomiting all morning, and having been awake two nights in a row, so he doesn't see Max pull out a pen and a pad of paper (a tiny Star Wars notebook) and neatly write out a name.

"This is the contact information for a colleague of mine. He may or may not be at liberty to get involved, due to the clandestine nature of the situation," he says quietly.

Steve frowns down at the small piece of paper. R2-D2 is watermarked across the back of it, but the name is clear.

 

**DR. ALEXEI TAYLOR, M.D., OB/GYN.**

 

"Just tell him that Wingedwraithdruid852 sent you."

Steve blinks, and no, he doesn't want to know. "Got it."

**xxxxxxxxxx**

Danny has a weird dream with Max in it.

He dreams that Max is looking down at him, worried, and is moving his mouth but isn't saying anything.

Someone keeps feeling at his pups, pressing into the skin of his belly and he snarls feebly, swiping out a few times until he smells fresh blood. He howls out for his alpha in confusion when people hold him down on his bed, and he can smell Steve but he can't see him.

He realizes finally that the pups aren't moving -- haven't moved in a long, long time. He looks down at his belly in fear, but all he can see is red.

He tries to wake up but he can't.

 

  
Steve nervously jams his thumb onto the coffee button of the machine in the hospital.

His hands are shaking and his neck is stiff from sitting perched in an insufferable chair all night next to Danny's bed. He wants to punch something so badly that his knuckles are almost tingling.

Thanks to Max's friend's string pulling, they're hidden up in the infectious disease ward of a hospital. It's quarantine of sorts, and it's completely empty thank god, because

    A) no one is infected with typhoid, and

    B) no one has the clearance to be up here.

However,

    C) this plan has done absolutely nothing to calm the.     alpha's nerves.

Max's friend has sworn not to report Danny to THRESH, but Steve has little reason to believe him, other than the fact that he trusts Max and this doctor is somehow Max's friend.

Dr. Alexei Taylor is a tall, dark, tawny man with impressive height and a thin lean stature. He's sporting a loud, mint green turtle neck that Steve is one hundred percent positive no body could pull off except for this man, and he's drifting cooly in and out of the room.

He's not at all what Steve expected considering that he had to introduce himself as a friend of WingedWraithDruid852 just to convince the personal assistant to pass the phone over to the doctor at the country club. He's so composed that only the deep furrow between his dark eyes is betraying how serious this situation is.

Steve mulls this over in his mind as he walks back into the room where Danny is laid out on a bed.

"I can scent your distress from here, Commander McGarrett," the doctor says quietly as he takes his mate's blood pressure, and Steve blinks looking up. "And though I can't guarantee that Danny won't be discovered under my care, I can assure you that, right now, no one but myself knows that you or Danny is up here." He smiles warmly at the alpha.

This guy doesn't smell like an alpha. He smells way too sweet, too gentle.

"You're not an alpha," Steve blurts out in confusion and leans forward in his chair. "How are you picking up my scent signatures?"

"You're correct; I'm indeed not an alpha," the doctor says quietly, writing something down on a clip board of charts and graph print outs. "I'm actually an omega, like Danny."

Steve chokes on the coffee he'd been attempting to sip and he sputters the hot beverage down his chin. "What?"

This is obviously why Max knew Steve could trust this doctor not to report Danny, but, Jesus, he never would have guessed.

Dr. Taylor chuckles briefly at him, raising his brows. "Sorry about that -- I should've times that better. To the world, I'm a beta; my license even says beta, but, yes, I'm actually an omega."

The alpha wipes his chin on the back of his hand and stares at him incredulously, "I can't scent you at all."

"Good. Means my hormone blockers are working. Just like Danny's," the doctor frowns. "Which brings me to my next question. Does Danny take this high of a dose of blockers every day?"

"Since he started carrying pups, I think," Steve glances down at the blonde in the bed, reaching out to hold his hand.

There's a sheen of feverish sweat on Danny's skin as he lay, unaware and half awake, and a few monitors are strapped onto his belly under a hospital gown.

The sight clenches Steve's chest around his lungs. Makes it hard to breathe.

"He said that the pups would change his smell otherwise, make him--"

"More appealing to alphas," the doctor nods, finishing his sentence for him. "That's true. It's a primal response to ensure that alphas will be drawn to him, to take him in if he were ever alone and carrying. That's of course archaic and arbitrary now, and a bit of a nuisance -- hence the blockers."

The doctor pauses, setting the charts on the bed and placing his hands in his pockets. The frown is back.

"Mr. McGarrett," he begins slowly, and Steve swallows thickly, tells himself his mouth hasn't just gone dry. "The problem with these blockers, is that as the pups develop in your mate's womb, his body has to supply a wealth of hormones. First, omegadren to grow, regulate, and provide for the pups; and, second, a cocktail of hormones to keep his male body from rejecting the pups."

Steve straightens up in his chair, clenching Danny's hand tighter. "Rejecting the pups? You mean he could lose the babies because of those fucking pills? Is that what this is?"

Alexei holds up his dark hands. "Your mate isn't currently showing any signs that his body is headed toward that route..."

"But what?" He can hear in Alexei's voice that there's a 'but' in that sentence.

Alexei walks over to show Steve the hormone tests. "Well, you can see that his body is now extremely low on omegadren." He points to one of the ranges labeled OM, and it's well below the acceptable range.

"But Danny's claws have been popped for a week. He even sank his fangs into my arm one night when I caught him by surprise," Steve gestures to Danny's sharp glass-like finger nails, curved into small hooks at the ends.

"Contrary to popular belief, Commander," the doctor begins softly, imploring him to lower his voice; "Omegadren isn't what stimulates his aggression and combat instincts. Omegadren is a calming hormone for omegas. It's also calming for children, betas, and alphas. When it's low, he becomes more aggressive. But when it's high, especially during gestation, it makes an omega smell sweet -- more than usual."

"When he first wakes up, he smells like honey and cedar."

"Exactly. Every omega is different; they'll have the scent of fresh cookies, flowers, campfires -- something that reminds you of home."

"Then why does the smell induce arousal in alphas?"

The doctor chuffs a soft laugh, glancing up from his read outs. "The smell induces bliss -- a potent, primal, intoxicating bliss. It's easy for an alpha's brain to translate it to arousal, because their bodies simply can't sort through that much chemically induced euphoria."

"Sounds like the effects of a psychotropic drug," Steve sighs, remembering when Danny had let Steve first experience his scent unbridled by blockers or deodorant. It had lead to an embarrassing, warm, sticky mess in the front panel of his favorite boxer briefs. "Sounds like E. I mean -- ah.. ecstasy pills."

"Exactly. Except it's ecstasy on steroids -- literally. Because omegadren is a steroidal sympathomimetic."

Steve frowns. "Going over my head here, doctor."

"The main point here is that people abuse knockoff omegadren as ecstasy pills. That's what the pills are: synthetic omegadren. And after they've been high a few hours, they take a pill, essentially blockers, to come down from it," he explains. " BUT. They aren't like normal blockers, because they don't just block omegadren -- they break it down completely, so there's no chance of failing a drug test. I think Danny has been taking the E-blockers."

Steve is struggling to keep up. Medicine to him is a stab of morphine in the thigh when you get shot, and a razor blade to your earlobe when you get a hematoma from rogue shrapnel.

But he thinks he gets it.

"So instead of hormone blockers, which aren't strong enough to mask the pup scent and all of the excess omegadren in Danny's system..." He begins, gesturing with his hands. "You think Danny's been using e-blockers -- which are primarily used by drug addicts to come down from ecstasy but essentially break down omegadren. Omegadren, which is what Danny's body makes naturally, but people take fake versions of to get high and just don't know it."

  
The doctor nods.

"Why do you think Danny would be using something that radical on the spectrum? Why would he do that?"

Dr Alexei sighs, crossing his arms over the clipboard. "Because, and I'm telling you this in confidence as we're both having to trust each other here, that's what I'm on. E-blockers work the best, and they're new to the black market as of a few months ago. I can recognize the compounds showing up in his comprehensive blood work panel."

"But it's not safe during pregnancy?"

"Absolutely not. He needs time to get his omegadren back up, and he needs time to rest."

"Is there anything I can do to help him recover?" Steve looks up hopefully. "We're on a case at work that the governor is putting a lot of pressure on us to solve..."

"Yes, our mutual friend has told me the gruesome details of what the job entails..." The doctor hesitates. "There is one thing you can do, actually," Alexei explains slowly.

Steve raises his brows, hopeful. "What is it?"

"Direct stimulation of the omega gland should expedite the production of omegadren, as for an explanation of how to do that.... I'll leave that to your imagination and trial and error." The doctor clears his throat awkwardly.

Steve has the grace to at least blush and changes the subject. "So Danny can't stay on the E-blockers."

"Aren't alphas going to know what he is?"

The doctor gives him a sympathetic look. "It's something you're gonna have to help him watch out for. At least until the pups are born."

Steve nods grimly. "Are the pups okay -- I mean, he's been taking the blockers this whole time..."

"We'll have to wait until next week for an ultrasound," the doctor says. "But the readouts look fine for the babies, and they feel fine."

"There's two of them, right? Two pups?" Steve asks quickly, glancing at Danny's belly.

"It seems that way, from what I can feel," he explains. "Come back with him in two weeks, and we should be able to set a due date. Call from a public phone again, and schedule with my secretary under the name Max Wraith and I'll know it's you."

Steve nods; he feels like he's back in the seals with all of this secret squirrel shit but he guesses it's necessary. 

"But Danny goes cold turkey on the fancy blockers?" 

Alexei nods. "Cold turkey. He can use deodorants, but that's it. He has to get off of those pills."

"What's that going to do to him?"

it's not   Easy to see on this man's rich dark skin, but Steve swears the guy blushes. "Just make sure your agenda is clear for the next few days." He pauses. "Maybe schedule this for a weekend alone."

Steve furrows his brow, watching as the doctor sets up an IV of vitamins and electrolytes that are supposed to held Danny gain enough strength to wake up and get home.

"What should I be expecting, here?"

Alexei clears his throat. "I would go buy some... Supplies."

"What kind of supplies, doc?" 

"The intimate kind. You're going to have to try to undo five months of hormone deficiency as fast as possible, and the lack of blockers is going to feel like a heat until he's out of withdrawal."

**xxxxxxxx**

By the end of the weekend, Danny is able to eat, and drink which makes him more aware.

Unfortunately the only thing he is currently aware of is that withdrawal from E-blockers is cruel and unusual.

The pulsing heat between his thighs is overpowering every thought until all he can do is lay there and pant, edges of his vision hazing and white, as slick starts to drip from his throbbing hole.

He cants his hips up, and that electric tug of arousal deep in his belly makes a cool gasp of air rush in over his lips. The friction of his boxers against his aching, swollen heat was enough to drive him to thrust blindly behind him, tightening the fabric's seam over his dripping entrance.

"Ugh f-fuck," he grunts, hand reaching down to grip his leaking length. But there is an emptiness in the sensation -- he had a different kind of need. A hot and twisting need in the bottom of his stomach. That exhilarating tug of arousal is now a dull blade threatening to split him in two, to turn him inside out.

"Steve..." He reaches out blindly, desperately seeking that warm gold skin of the alpha that usually slept beside him, all lean lines of muscle stretched out like a lazy cat.

But the bed is cold.

The pups shift in his belly when he throws the covers off of himself and rolled onto his back in the middle of the bed. The babies are blatantly protesting.

"Fucking christ you two, I'm being tortured enough, here," he hissed through his teeth. The hormones, his sensitive nipples that sometimes drip something (that he really would just rather not acknowledge) later in the night if Steve messed with them too much, the fact that he couldn't properly jack off ... There's a list.

He thrusts his belly up, arching his back off the bed in a pathetic attempt to knead his throbbing, wet hole on another knot in the sheets, but the pups are annoyed by the movement, shoving inside him with their feet.

He whines desperately, collapsing back to the bed rubbing his face against the cool sheets.

Warm fingertips suddenly begin to knead his nipples.

Danny freezes, lips parting with a gentle moan of satisfaction, but he doesn't open his eyes. He curls into the alpha. Steve smells so fucking powerful, so strong and dominant and it sets something off in the lowest part of his belly.

He slowly opens his eyes, watching the large hands tease his nipples again, making them poke up, stiffly.

The omega hisses softly in discomfort as the swollen flesh is kneaded a bit too roughly in Steve's powerful hands. "Easy, easy babe," Danny grumbles.

He reaches up finally, locking eyes with him before tugging his head down to his chest.

"You want me to use my mouth instead?" Steve whispered huskily, grinning wide and mischievous.

"Just shut up and suck them, Steve," he retorted, cupping one with his hand.

"So demanding," Steve purred, kissing his temple. He slowly straddled Danny's thighs, bending low to nuzzle his mate's swollen belly.

"I can't help it," the omega mumbles in reply, gasping out when Steve's mouth closes over a nipple, sucking fiercely. "Oh fuck," he moaned, shutting his eyes as he reached out to stroke Stevie's hair. He bites his lip in both pain and pleasure when the seal sucks hard enough to pull his tender flesh back up with him a bit. "Feels so good, babe, you're so good at that..."

Steve grins around the skin in his mouth, taking a moment to slurp loudly because he knows it will drive Danny crazy.

"I love you like this," Steve whispers with a laugh under his breath against Danny's chest.

"Like what?" Danny grins, opening his eyes. But he already knows the answer.

Still, Danny likes hearing him admit it; the omega splays out his hands and slowly rubs over the expanse of his rounding belly with both hands, eyes never leaving Steve's. Steve is enraptured by the sight.

"Like this," he whispers again, gently taking both of the omegas wrists in his huge hands and stretching them up over his body against the bed, leaving him open and ripe to be devoured and ravished.  
.  
"Full," he whispers, kissing over his belly toward a nipple. "Full of my pups."

"You just like it when I can't wrestle away from you when you turn caveman and start manhandling me."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, sir," Steve purrs wickedly and pounces forward, turning Danny until he was on his hands and knees and gently shoved his shoulders down to the bed with a forceful hand between his shoulder blades.

"Hnnngh, babe," the omega sighs, but between his legs he's raging hard.

Steve leans forward, gripping Danny's blonde hair back to expose his neck; "I think you LIKE being manhandled and bred by your alpha."

Danny flushes with a blush, and though he hisses when his alpha grips his hair hard. The sensation triggers an automatic response; he tucks his hips in and out momentarily to stretch his tailbone as high and outward as he can to present for his mate.

He smirks when he feels Steve swear under his breath.

"Go on then," Danny urges, "you've caught your prey, you fucking animal, don't tell me you're gonna hold back because of..." He glances back at him, because -- Jesus fuck -- he's pregnant, but he's not about to break in half or something.

Steve had apparently spent half an hour talking to their damn doctor about the most awkward questions imaginable until Steve had gotten the big, glaring 'okay' that he wanted.

Which is good. However, after Steve bites down on his lip, giving Danny's round belly a long considering look, he says he needs to double check that this position is safe for the babies, first. Then he's quickly lifting his smartphone to flip through his notes he jotted down.

Danny might actually die.

This fire searing inside of his skull is raging a dizzying haze onto his consciousness that reduces every single thought to fuck and breed and dominate me. Considering that he's already carrying pups, the thought is a reminder that his hormones truly are fucked up.

Danny huffs out a long breath, biting the inside of his lower lip. He really did a number on himself this time.

When Steve runs a cool hand slowly over Danny's feverishly warm lower back, he clenches his jaw, feeling a low pull of need steal his breath as he all but involuntarily thrusts against a stray pillow.

Steve laughs softly behind him, looking up from the phone in surprise, and gently tugs the pillow away; "Babe, no."

Danny can't stop the pathetic, disheartened choke of a whine that escapes him, robbing him of whatever dignity he might be able to muster after trying to fuck Steve's pillow. "You're fucking killing me here, I swear to fucking god, you bastard!"

"Shhhh, Danno, it's okay," he whispers, finally satisfied with whatever his notes said, because he's finally putting that damn phone away, rubbing both hands on him now. He moans, leaning into the touch like a cat and flushes pink at how pathetic it is that he's fucking starved for the contact; a textbook bred omega, high on excess omegadren.

Danny suddenly grinds out an annoyed pleading noise, though, because while Steve's palms are good... they're not nearly enough.

"S-Steve," he begs, reaching back to paw for his hand shakily. Doesn't he understand that Danny's eyes are watering and... "Please?"

Steve parts Danny's cheeks with one hand, using his other hand to delicately run the pad of his middle finger in a painfully slow few circles around Danny's slick, glistening rim and, god damnit, this fucking jerk knows exactly what he's doing.

Panting, the blonde rocks back toward him, arching his back even more and fuck his hot, soaked hole is swollen and so over sensitive, and desire clenches deep in his hips enough to make him snarl. It tapers off into an embarrassing whine when finally there's a finger, touching him there, and it's not quite in, but fuck it's almost in and then -- "Steve, this isn't fair, just -- please! I c-can't just -- I need --"

"I've got you Danno," he purrs, "I got you, don't worry. But we both know if I rush through this, then you're gonna get hit with this later again tonight even worse."

Danny turns his face sullenly back to the mattress, swearing at him faintly, until finally the digit starts moving again, circling his rim and spiraling deeper on his hole and pressing gently in a circular motion right into the source of he slick.

And then-- there, finally, THERE -- something is sliding through his slippery, over-sensitive ring of muscle with an absolutely wet sounding _squelch_.

"Nnnn..." Danny can't form words, because holy fuck, thank god almighty something is finally in his asshole.

"Feel good, baby? Is that what you needed?"

When his alpha slides two fingers into him, Danny's moans through his teeth as he bites on his lower lip.

He won't allow himself to whine again, but he shoves himself back desperately, wanting Steve to get the message that he needs more.

Now.

"Jesus. You've got it bad..."

Danny snarls, and turns to bare his teeth and maybe even scream at him that he doesn't understand what it's like, and this isn't fair and he's physically in pain from needing to be fucked HARD into the mattress.

However, Steve shoves his upper body back against the sheets, still mindful of the pups nestled low in his mate's belly, but hard enough to make a point. He doesn't like being challenged and Danny knows that.

"St-Steve," he pleads.

"I know what you need right now," he whispers. He bites his lip for a moment, concentrating despite Danny's ragged moaning breaths, until he finds the swollen spongey gland with the tip of a finger.

Danny's hips jerk involuntarily when his O gland is stimulated and his eyes flick open; one startled moment of lucidity steals him.

"Steve, wait, no," he sputters, trying to rock away from his mate. "No, no, no, you know I hate that, it's -- I'm way too sensitive for that right now!"

"Danny, it's for your own good!"

"Oh that's cute --" Danny seethes, grunting in ecstasy. "How is this possibly for my ---"

Steve grips him harder by the hips, and fuck that's going to leave a bruise. "Those fucking blockers you've been taking! Did you even think about what you were doing to your body?!"

"All I can think about right now is what YOU'RE doing to my body, you _prick_."

Steve smirks, "do I not recall a little pregnant omega begging for my clever fingers?"

His omega snarls at him, panting. "I'm gonna gouge your eyes out with my clever fingers."

Steve presses down into the gland.

"OH Ff--," Danny huffs in a desperate breath for a split second, seeing stars from an electrifyingly arousing seize of pleasure low in his hips that's so intense -- too intense -- that makes him want to sink his own teeth into his forearm to ground himself. 

Steve calmly leans over him, smugly watching him helplessly fall apart as Danny is reminded exactly who's in control here. 

His eyes water. "This can't be what the doctor said to do to me."

Steve is shaking his head as Danny takes a second or two to recover, panting against the sheets. "Babe it was literally the doctor's orders -- scout's honor. I have to do it."

Danny is downright mad, now, writhing against him futilely. "Steve, you fucking bastard, don't! I swear to g--"

"Then you shouldn't have taken those fucking pills," Steve cuts him off when his fingers surge forward, delving into the delicate bundle of nerves hidden away in Danny's body. The omega's mouth drops open, and he's panting shallowly, as his knees buckle as he still tries to scramble up the bed with quivering uncoordinated limbs. "Danny it'll only take a few minutes," he grunts, pulling him back.

Steve starts massaging the gland in earnest, and Danny finally howls in shock at the pleasure that borders on pain for its intensity. In a few second, Steve watches as the omega wrenches his hands onto bars of the headboard for purchase while his pupils dilate with black glassy ink.

The omega's whole body, shaking and shivering with the overload of pleasure, is completely at the mercy of his fingertips.

Steve can actually smell the omegadren flooding back into Danny's system. It's working.

At some point, he starts to gasp more ragged heaving breaths and bites his lip hard enough to draw blood until he sobs out, tears and blood and saliva all mixing and he coughs because it's too much and he's almost -- he feels the edge that he's almost over and if he could just--

"Oh f-fuck, Steve," he bursts out suddenly, back arching.

Danny's hips jerk in time with his rough ministrations and hot fresh slick gushes over Steve's hand, soaking the omega's channel and dripping out down his thighs.

As Danny stares, unseeing, as his world fades into white from the burst of overwhelming pleasure burning his senses into ice, mouth panting shallowly against the bed, he feels Steve's warm hand quickly scoop up some of the slick.

The alpha coats himself, nearly on the verge of coming just from watching his mate's forced orgasm unravelling him with the overstimulation.

He clenches his teeth with a growl and gives one last merciless press on Danny's gland to absolutely milk him as much as possible, sending him into a new series of convulsions.

It's then that he rips his fingers out, earning a feeble, helpless sound from his partner, before he lines up his cock at Danny's dripping entrance. "I'm gonna knot you and then I think that'll be enough."

Danny bites his bottom lip and nods, raising up his hips, and Steve plunges in, all at once into his velvety, slick heat.

Danny gasps, all of his breath leaving his body as the floor-drops out from under his sense of gravity, and he's floating on the searing edge of pleasure and pain that sweeps the bottom of his stomach up into his throat.

He's pretty sure his eyes cross from the mind blowing relief of it a moment later when he's finally adjusted and he clenches around Steve, trying to feel where he ends and his alpha begins. The alpha pulls out slightly and Danny blushes at the fact that his body greedily swallows up Steve's cock, almost sucking him back in, until he's buried to the hilt.

Steve falters at that, unintentionally falling forward against Danny's quivering back, and his pregnant omega yells out again as the his thick burgeoning length sinks even deeper into him. Danny finally sobs a choked breath and helplessly comes on the lower swell of his sweat glistened pregnant belly.

The thought of that alone almost undoes Steve, but it's the powerful wet heat that squeezes around him again and again in Danny's climax that makes him grit his teeth and try to mentally go through Seal protocol checklists.

He's not done yet.

He clenches his jaw, breathing heavy through his nose as the omega goes limp before him with a sigh on the mattress, completely blissed out with pleasure and unravelled.

Steve tests him by sharply thrusting with his hips; Danny gives a gentle moan, still shivering helplessly enough in his hips with aftershocks that he can't manage to process the amount of pleasure and, now, excess omegadren coursing through him.

"This," he grunts, thrusting again and pulling out slowly, "this is the Danny, right here, that I have wet dreams about, babe."

Danny blinks slowly, still panting into the sheets languidly, but Steve swears he sees the hint of a frown of confusion glaze across his brow.

"Why, you ask?" He huffs, grabbing Danny's hips roughly to slam himself back inside him. "Because he's relaxed -- calm -- too fucked out to stress himself out," he starts to quicken the pace, and Danny moans when he reaches forward to run gentle caresses along his body. "And he's mine," Steve purrs, reaching low to feel their pups stirring in Danny's warm, rounded, golden belly that hangs down toward the sheets. "And these are mine, too..."

Danny closes his eyes below Steve, starting to tighten again with the building of another orgasm, and Steve is merciless when he feels it.

The alpha grins, bucking his hips more forcefully, and reaches forward to clasp his huge hand over the back of Danny's neck, pinning his front half to the bed. He doesn't squeeze, but he holds him with purpose, asserting a subconscious and primal claim over his mate.

When he feels his knot start to swell, Danny breathes out a long, almost relieved sounding moan at the satisfying pressure; Steve leans forward, grinning wickedly as he lowers his hot mouth to Danny's ear.

"I'm gonna knot you and fill you with my come, Danny," he whispers.

Danny grunts a desperate moan in response and, squeezing his eyes shut, nods. He pushes back against him to force Steve deeper inside and clenches down on him.

"Hnngh fuck, oh no you don't, babe. I can feel you gripping me. Feels so fucking good -- nice try..." He moans, rubbing over his partners warm back with his free hand before leaning in close over his back. "Is this what you needed all morning, Danny? You wanted me to stuff you full?"

"M-maybe," Danny mutters sullenly as that sweet tantalizing edge of orgasm rolls closer and inches away, frustrating him, because a momentary distraction has broken his concentration.

The pups are absolutely rolling, excited by the frenzy of his hormones, and he freezes, grimacing for a second because it's both distracting and dizzying as hell. He tries to tighten his muscles to make whoever it is that's trying to shove their head under his ribs fucking lay off. Shutting his eyes for a moment, the omega takes a long wavering breath as he endures the relentless shoves and kicks.

"Pups -- torturing you -- again?" Steve ventures, , between breaths, slowing to a stop.

The omega doesn't have to answer because a huge protective hand suddenly settles low on the side of his belly, rubbing a gentle circle as his mate leans over him, still deep inside him.

"I'm trusting you to tell me if we need to stop, babe," Steve says softly, bent over his back to whisper hot breath over his ear with a kiss as he waits for Danny's answer.

"Don't you dare stop, McGarrett," Danny mutters threateningly, and pulls a face because the little parasite finally settles down in a twist of elbows and kicks. "Alright. I'm good

Steve smirks quietly to himself before leaning forward harshly to wrench his hand into Danny's hair, tugging his head up so he can snarl against his face, because he knows that Danny likes it rough when he's this riled up. "Are you giving the orders now, Detective Williams?"

Danny swallows thickly, shaking his head.

"Good," Steve mutters, before grabbing Danny's hands behind his back, roughly.

"Because, for a moment there," he snarls, "it sounded like you forgot how much stronger I am, even though we both know you're a lot weaker, right now. You're more vulnerable like this, and you know it -- having to carry my big pups around in your little womb." He pointedly reaches below them to pat the taut skin of the blonde's belly. 

Danny's expression hardens in a blush, but Steve feels him growing wetter from the comment, so he runs with it.

"I know you like to walk around with your chest puffed out, but, deep down, you crave this, don't you, Danny," he pants in a heady tone. "Letting your Alpha take control for a while, take care of you, protect you... Fuck you. And it's okay to admit how much you need it sometimes."  
He sinks his teeth into the back of Danny's neck, and the omega yelps; his smaller arms struggle against Steve's vice grip until Danny tires himself out, panting, and finally lays still as Steve starts to fuck him harder and deeper.

"You can't overpower me, Danny. You're mine. My mate -- mine to fuck," he slams into Danny's prostate, for emphasis because Danny always begs him to 'be rougher next time.' "You're mine to breed, fill with pups, you're mine inside and out." He whispers, pumping his hips harder and faster, the knot swollen enough now to catch the rim of his omega and Danny hisses from the discomfort but nods as he tries to clench on the swollen base of Steve's cock to trap it inside.

"No, agh, no. Almost. Jesus fuck you feel so fucking good," Steve rambles. "Tell me what you want, Danny. You can tell me. It's okay to want it..." He leans in to suck on scent marker in Danny's neck, letting his own pheromones from his saliva soak into the gland, making him calm, pliant, and submissive.

"I want you to f-fill me so full with come that it h-hurts," Danny begs huskily, and fuck, the thought is so arousing, so honest and dirty for his sweet proud mate to admit.

Steve has to grit his teeth and force himself to breathe evenly. "Fuck, Danny, so proud of you, babe. Now, tell me, why do you want my come so badly?" He digs his fingers into Danny's wrists, shoves them into the mattress to pin him down.

Danny's face turns a deep shade of red and Steve can see him hesitating.

"Answer me, Danno. Admit it."

He shakes his head.

Steve growls at him, barely able to think straight because he's gonna lose control and knot, but he has to know first. "Danny," he warns, bucking into him so hard that he cries out.

"It's just that...fuck! I just --" the blonde rambles, trying to form words despite the overstimulation of pleasure before he gasps out, clenches his eyes shut in self hatred, "I hate that I need you like this -- need you to take me, own me."

"And yet here we are," Steve grunts, licking the back of his neck with shameless grin. "Why, Danny?"

Danny turns slightly to peer up at him with desperately honest eyes. "Because I want it."

The alpha watches him clench his eyes shut, finally breaking beneath him.  
"Tell me." Steve huffs between thrusts.

Danny takes a wavering breath. "I want it. I want you to take me -- walk in the door and surprise the hell out of me, tear me away from what I'm doing and rip my clothes off -- drag me to the bed. I want bruises and bite marks and your come to be flooding out of me for hours, so that anyone within half a mile knows that Steven McGarrett threw me down, held me there, and thoroughly fucked me..."

"Christ that's hot, Danny," Steve breathes, kissing his back. "Fucking beautiful."

"And I love it even more when you hold me tighter and make me take it," the omega whispers, face feverishly red.

"I know you do," Steve nods into his back. "You'll take my knot again and again, until I've fucked a whole litter in you and you're full of pups and milk."

Danny's hips jerk at that and he moans.

Steve's mind conjures ideas of Danny so fertile and ripe and full with more of his pups, and vulnerable and at his mercy as he lay below him, and  _fuck_ it's so hot to imagine. It's only then, when Steve's as far inside Danny as he can get, mind burning with this enrapturing, new fantasy, and his omega is purring that he wants Steve to come in him, that the alpha loses his frantic grip on his self control...

...and comes inside Danny..

His mate follows him right over the edge, arching his back and slams back against Steve's hips. He somehow takes the huge knot further and it fucking burns so good that he shivers, and melts, and comes helplessly below the powerful, sweat slicked alpha draped, panting, over his back.

For once, Danny feels safe, spent, and relaxed, and for a minute or two more, neither can suffer to utter a word.

But Steve's hand comes up to rub reassuringly on his bicep as he presses a kiss against the salty skin of his shoulders, between pants of breath. Tugging them both, careful of Danny's pregnancy, Steve turns their bodies until they're resting and catching their breath on their sides.

"I needed that," Danny mumbles half heartedly, not opening his eyes.

"Doctor's orders," Steve huffs, the action making his length jolt slightly against Danny's O gland and he tenses.

"Then I think I need a prescription," Danny hums in content.

"I think we need a safe word."

  **xxxxx**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So apparently the guys have different facets of themselves to explore in the bedroom ;p
> 
> Yay for Spring Break! Spent my day perched on a couch writing, while wearing an unfortunate looking (but scandalously comfortable) wool maxi dress. 'Mulan' was on in the background, followed by 'Gone Girl' (the best movie/novel ever) to get me in detective mode. It was truly fabulous.
> 
> The next update will probably not be as quick, because -- unfortunately -- I've got a lot of law studies to catch up on this week.
> 
> Comments make my day! Sometimes, with school, it's the ONLY thing to make my day.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My schoolwork is getting pretty intense, so I'm not sure when I'll be able to update. I'll try not to keep y'all waiting for too long! I just had to get this chapter out for now, even if it's a bit shorter than usual!

 

Steve comes back from a morning run to find Danny awake on the back deck at 7:00. He's got his wayfair sunglasses on, is wrapped in one of their white Egyptian cotton sheets, and apparently gives zero fucks about the fact that he is naked beneath the sheet.

He has a non-alcoholic Bloody Mary in one hand and Steve has to keep from laughing at the sight. His hair is completely tousled and wild and his expression is one of 'don't-you-even-think-of-saying-something-about-this sheet.'

"Rough night?" Steve winks, and Danny buries his face in his hands, groaning.

"Rough night. Listen to you, as if you don't know why," he grumbles. "I've got alpha-hand sized bruises on my hips and bite marks all over my back."

"You were complaining about them last--"

"Don't finish that sentence, I swear to god," he sighs, pulling the sheet tighter.

Steve frowns, because he can smell the sour scent of shame through the delicious scent of honey and cedar from even a few feet away.

"Babe, you don't have to be embarrassed about anything," Steve says quietly, walking closer to scratch gently at Danny's scalp.

"I don't have to be," he sighs, "but I dunno. I think I am. I just..."

"Did you not enjoy yourself last night?" Steve frowns.

"No, no, I did," Danny assures him quietly, looking down at his tomato juice and giving it a little swirl. "I did. That's just the first time that I've ever acted so...stereotypically omega."

"It's okay, you know, to want things like that, Danny."

"Yeah but, Steve I was a beta for almost two decades," he retorts quickly. "And then last night, I was so..."

  
"Last night, you were unbelievably gorgeous, and sexy as hell," Steve interjects emphatically. "And I felt like you were opening up to me about something you only trusted me to see, and I loved that," he pauses. "And I love you."

Danny smiles faintly. "I just feel safe with you. Like I know you're not going to judge me," he whispers, before deadpanning. "Probably because you're such a lunatic yourself." He smirks.

Steve grins, happy to see his usual, sarcastic fireball of a partner making an appearance. "I'm a lunatic for you. And everyone has something that really spices things up for them in the bedroom..." He says cryptically.

Danny pauses. "Like that obvious pregnancy fetish you've been hiding? And how you can't leave my nipples alone?" He gives him a playful scrutinizing glare.

Steve blushes. "I will admit that, lately, your... New physique is appealing."

Danny smirks at him. "Well, luckily you can hold me down and have your way with me on a regular basis." He then tilts his head in consideration. "However, I do not care to fucking lactate while hunting down a serial killer, so you better get your horndog mouth away from my nipples during sex, or I'm gonna actually get a supply going, and I don't want that. The whole thing is stimulation based." He gestures vaguely to his chest with a disgruntled expression. "That's just not ever something I'm prepared to deal with."

Steve literally has to twist the way he's standing, because, for some reason, the thoughts are sending blood rushing south and, really, this is a new one on him. Get a fucking grip.

Danny is raising a brow at him, and even after the speech Steve just gave Danny about not being embarrassed by fetishes, he still can't help the blush blossoming on his skin.

"So how does Max know another omega?" Danny asks, settling back in his chair and mercifully changing the subject.

Steve shakes his head. "Your guess is as good as mine. Probably through something involving dragons." 

"And wizards." 

"And a lack of women," he chuckles. "But you never know."

"I can't believe I didn't actually meet my doctor," Danny throws his hands up. 

"If you hadn't been taking so many blockers you could have neurotically asked him a thousand questions like you planned to, Danny."

The omega frowns. "You can't blame me for not wanting to go to the bullpen smelling like a damned Honey-bun." 

Steve clears his throat to stifle a laugh. "Let's just see how the deodorant works. If it doesn't, we can ask the doctor to list all available alternatives. He's an omega too, so he'll probably be able to set you up with an effective regiment."

"I can't believe I'm not actually the only Omega in this pineapple infested hellhole." Danny stares out toward the ocean.

Steve shifts awkwardly, thinking about the fact that he still hasn't told Danny that all of the victims were omegas and that most of them had been carrying pups.

Fuck.

"Ultrasound's next week, too," Steve grins suddenly, changing the subject, and leans in to kiss him on the forehead.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

He's mixing creamer into his decaf coffee (because, however oxymoronic the concept of decaf coffee is, there's nothing funny about how much Danny actually misses the ritual of coffee drinking in itself), and someone is suddenly behind him, waiting for their turn at the machine; it briefly spooks his omega senses, which have been getting stronger every day since quitting the blockers

He sniffs discreetly.

It's Kono.

She has a sad look on her face when he turns around, and she won't meet his eyes

There's a bond bite on the back of her neck when he steps aside.

"What in the -- Kono! Oh my god, Congrats!" Danny bursts out excitedly, almost spilling his mug of coffee. "Who's the lucky alpha?"

But Kono sighs and glances down at him over her shoulder. "You would know if we ever hung out anymore, brah."

The comment cuts something in Danny's chest in half, leaving sharp edges, regret, and guilt. "Kono..."

"Have a great day, Danny," she says quietly with a frown, turning her back to the omega and stalking off in her black suede boots.

  
Danny stares as she leaves, wondering if he's fucked up this friendship beyond repair.

However, one of his pups suddenly surprises him with an elbow and he reaches down to try to soothe the little thing, if not only to convince himself that there are two very valid, precious reasons for his terrible behavior and his secrets.

Turning back toward his office, he finds himself conjuring up ways to break the news before she finds out on her own...Which would not go down well; he's picturing being maced and getting some sort of stab wound from a stiletto heel.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

  
The first lead that they get on the case is to an older couple that used to own the farm before it was auctioned off and eventually bought by the state. It's taken Danny and Kono three weeks and endless rounds of phone tag to track the deeds of sale from the state, through the bank, through the auction house, and back to this elderly couple.

"So how did the farm end up being owned by no-one?" Steve squints in the sun at a street sign, turning the Camaro onto an old gravel road.

"Apparently the soil turned acidic, ruined the crops. Can't do much with a farm that can't grow anything," Danny mumbles, glancing over at him. "Bought by the state 6 years ago."

Steve frowns. "Big chunk of land for the state to buy and not touch. What's the story behind that? Gypsy curse? Giant sinkhole? Nudist jogging group down the street?"

Danny wants to laugh but he's got a headache from the overpowering smell of his "manly beta" scent masking deodorant. He was afraid of what might happen if he started sweating today while chasing leads, so he's got the stuff caked on himself where ever he could reach (and even a few places that he couldn't, thanks to Steve).

Still, the masking deodorant isn't going to hold up -- and he knows it.

This is the first time he's been out in public with only masking deodorant (and not blockers) since he was 16. When Steve meets his eyes, he gives him a concerned once over.

The blonde wonders if the alpha knows that he's worried or if he can pick it up in his unblocked pheromones. Steve's been uneasy since the night before, and Danny knows it has something to do with the fact that Steve views their offices as an extension of his territory, and now, Danny's not anywhere near his territory. A nesting alpha would probably see that as an open invitation for trouble.

Danny huffs a small sigh. The only thing more stereotypically omega-ish than fearing a run-in with another alpha, is not leaving his house because of that fear, so Steve's just going to deal with it.  
Danny doesn't want to instigate another spin cycle of arguments, so he just keeps relaying facts about the last crime scene.

"It was originally supposed to be a park when the state bought it, but when funds never were allocated to demolish it, it stayed on the back burner for a year until, well, the lava started to flow down the mountain..."

"And the state realized the property was useless," Steve finishes. "I'mp so happy they used our hard earned tax money to pay for land no one can use."

Danny holds up a finger; "Doesn't stop people from wanting it, though. The state still gets offers on it every few months."  
  
Steve frowns, throwing up a hand as he stares down the dusty road; "Who in the hell would want a farm --with bad soil-- in the middle of nowhere that badly?"

Danny flips through a stack of papers. "Ah...well, there's a nature reserve in the middle of all these properties, and I think I've got a list of interested parties somewhere..." He mumbles, wincing from both the headache and now, nausea.

"Babe don't read it in the car if you've still got the morning sickness thing going on; that'll make it worse," Steve interrupts him quietly.

"'I'm not gonna puke in my OWN car Steven," he snaps, but yeah he's definitely hot, tired, hungry, and nauseated. But at least he's working he thinks, whipping out a small notepad with notes scribbled over it. "In the last two years: looks like they got offers from two amateur re-enactment societies, a hippie commune type thing, a church, and... Two historical preservation societies."

The seal exhales, twisting his hands on the wheel for a moment. "That's a LOT of of people to get involved in this case for questioning if the governor actually wants to keep it under wraps for the rest of the tourist season."

"I'm sure the all of those victims' mates will understand that he's obscuring the progress of the case to get the state books out of the red," Danny has his hand over his brow like he's nauseated, pressing his eyes shut.

Steve frowns. "Well, let's see what..." He pauses to glance at a paper in his lap, "'Irene and Marvin Northamer' have to say. We're almost there."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Danny makes Steve stand with him by the car until the small detective is positive he's not going to hurl on the Northamers' front porch.

Steve makes Danny wear his tac-vest.

The house is smaller and reminds Steve of his own home. It's painted a dusty blue, but he's got a feeling that it might be literally dusty from the road, because there's a fine layer of the stuff on everything, including an old orange cat that's laying in the sun.

"Hey kitty," Steve says to it as they reach the steps.

But the thing sniffs the air and hisses at them.

"So friendly, Steve, I can see why you love cats," Danny says flatly, and he can't resist hissing back at it.  
Absolutely bewildered, the cat scrambles off the porch with its tail fluffed up.  
Danny is laughing to himself until he notices the alpha glaring at him, and he raises up his hands innocently, "What? He started it."

Steve shakes his head and rings the doorbell. But after a few minutes, a man in his mid forties opens the door, and it's clearly not Marvin or Irene Northamer.

The scent of alpha is hard to miss, and Steve stiffens involuntarily.

"Can I help you?" the man grunts wearily, eyeing their badges.

"Good afternoon, sir, Five-0," Danny begins, "we were hoping to speak with a Marvin or Irene Northamer. Are you of any relation to them?"

The guy turns his head, looks Danny up and down curiously for a moment like he can't figure him out. "They're my parents-- I'm Louis Northamer. What's this about?"

"We're working a case involving a farm your parents used to own," Steve answers, and Danny swears his chest is puffed out when he addresses the other alpha. "We just have a few questions for them if you don't mind. Tax records show that this house is in their name?"

"It is. My beta and I take care of'm; she cleans, cooks, I keep up the house and bills and all that," he explains, but he's still looking at Danny. "You two might as well come on in, Dad's got his oxygen tank set up in the living room."

The blonde purses his lips uneasily at the way the guy refers to his wife by her subgender classification, but nods when he gestures for them to follow him inside before disappearing through the door.

Steve silently reaches an arm out to hold Danny back and gestures for the omega to get behind him.

"You gonna be okay with that scent?" Steve mutters, glancing over his shoulder.

"Funny that you should mention that, Steven, because the only thing I smell right now is you and your Papa-Bear-Alpha aggression," the blonde snaps, reaching up to smack him in the back of his head and the alpha winces, rubbing the spot with his hand as he enters the house.

Danny manages not to show it, but the scent of strange alpha is actually pretty unsettling to him, and it hits him like a burning haze when he enters the house.

Jesus, he thinks, and he swears it's like mustard gas, slightly toned down. If Steve hears his heart beat quicken, he doesn't let on.

Just behind the entrance to the front room, a small, curvy woman is peering around the wall at them nervously. She has large, gentle brown eyes and a bandana holding back her frizzy black hair.

Steve nods to her politely, but she disappears.

"Michelle, fix us some coffee, " he mutters, not bothering to look at her as he gestures for them to sit.

Marvin, it turns out, is so old that their prospects of getting any detailed information out of the man are looking slim. When they turn the corner, the old man is sitting, propped up by pillows, with oxygen tank tubing curling around him like vines on old tree. His eyes are glazed over and dulled with cataracts, giving him an eerily unfocused stare.

Danny glances to lock eyes with Steve; they share a look, and the omega knows that Steve has already given up on acquiring accurate information from him. But he has to try.

They introduce themselves, starting the questioning process, and Danny hands him a copy of the auction house receipt.

"The farm," he answers in a raspy voice, "the ground turned on us, spoilt the cane crop..."

"Yes sir," begins Steve. "But before you auctioned it off, do you remember anyone who was familiar with the property? Any farm hands, neighbors, or relatives that worked with you?"

"Son I had workers a dime a dozen," he answers, and holds up a wavering hand to make a wide sweeping gesture, "Nobody would hire the Japanese-Americans after the war... I told them that I didn't care where they came from or what language they spoke after work, can't turn down hardworking betas that show up eager for the work they couldn't find nowhere else..."

"Did you ever keep records of the names?" Danny presses, anxious to get this the hell over with because he can feel Louis's eyes on him from the edge of the living room. It's making him nervous, which is making the pups agitated. Steve must notice his scent changing, because he subtly scoots a bit closer to him, pressing his knee against his reassuringly.

The old man is shaking his head. "I couldn't damn pronounce their names, and lord I tried but it ain't easy to call out some mess a' eighteen damn syllables when you've got daily wages to dole out..." He pauses grinning with his abnormally large denture teeth; "Hell I just gave'm new names and they were okay with that, okay with anything as long as they got paid, didn't matter the name on the envelope. Jed, Hank, Tom, Bill... M'son Louis named one of 'em Mickey and one of 'em Felix... But I had to draw the line at Flipper."

Danny chuckled, shaking his head. "Any strange occurrences on the property, sir?"

"Yeah, son, the damn soil turnin' sour!" The man exclaimed loudly, wheezing out a few dry coughs afterward from the effort.

"We'll wrap this up soon, sir, whenever you're ready," Steve says quickly, loud enough for the man to hear over his coughing fit, and the man nods, starting to catch his breath.

Louis's wife Michelle appears, timidly setting down a try of mismatched China and coffee. It's just then that he realizes she's pregnant, very pregnant, and he feels the hormones hit him like a truck.

He jumps back, startled, at the surge of hormones that automatically flood through him, trying to synch with the beta like pseudo pack behavior and grinds his teeth against the dizzying sensation, unable to stop the slightest whine that hisses up from his chest.

Steve whips his head around to stare at him, "Danny? What? What is it?"

Michelle quickly sets down the tray, stepping back quietly, and gives him a funny expression. Louis does a double take toward him, right as he's staring at the guy's wife.

"You looking at something, beta?" Louis snaps. "Because surely you ain't checking out my wife right in front of me."

Danny's mouth parts quickly but words wither in his throat. Because he's looking at her because she's looking at him and she knows that he knows that she knows about the pups and --

"I uh..."

"You can refer to him as Detective Williams, Louis," Steve says coldly.

Danny elbows Steve in the ribs, because the whole room is filling with alpha stress, and it's making his heart beat out of control. Michelle is still giving him an incredulous expression with her hand on her belly and her delicate features are poised as if she's about to say something about the synching, but Danny shakes his head. "Don't, please." His eyes are begging her not to say anything.

Meanwhile, whatever tension has been rising between Louis and Steve has now emblazoned the two alpha males into raising into their feet to glare at eachother.

Danny starts gathering his papers in a hurry with shaking hands, fully aware that his sweat is going to render his masking deodorant.

Marvin is looking around the room raising his hands in confusion. "Whassamatter?!" He yells repeatedly in his raspy voice and Michelle tries to comfort him.

"What's that matter is that this goddamn alpha is in my home lettin' this beta oggle at my wife!"

"Hey -- woah woah hey! There was no ogling, I can assure you!" Danny snaps. "Your wife and I were  
"You shut your fucking trap, beta, I know what I saw!" Louis roars -- really roars -- and the sound hits him like needles and claws its way through his nervous system. He yelps out, twisting in pain, stuck at the mercy of his unblocked omega senses that urge him to be submissive to alphas.

"Keep your voice down," Steve roars back and places a hand on his gun out of habit.

That's the final straw, and Louis surges forward with a few hulking steps, fists raised.

Steve unstraps the holster, "Louis, freeze!"

Danny is biting so hard on the insides of his cheek to keep from whining on the noise that he tastes blood. He's about to tell Steve that they just need to GO for once, because of how fast this situation is heating up, when Marvin Northamer somehow pulls himself to his feet.

"Dad!" Louis yells, voice edging on concern as he and Michelle rush to steady him. "What're you--"

"Son, you pipe down, y'er scarin' that poor omega and I ain't gonna stand for it in my own damn house!!"

Danny whips around fast enough to hurt his neck, and Steve is staring at the old man like he's just sprouted a second head.

Oh fuck.

"There's no omega here," Steve blurts quickly, desperately. Because, really, how the f--

"And for chrissakes, he's carrying a litter and here you are scarin' the ever livin' daylights out of him! I won't have it!"

The old man waves vaguely toward Danny, who has seen statues move more than he's able to move right now.

Danny's blood is frozen in his veins as everyone turns to stare at him, but he manages to fake an almost convincing expression of confusion. "Sir," he chuckles nervously, "I'm not--"

"Can smell ya from 'ere, boy, even through the mask," Marvin coughs. Lifting off his mask to make a point of inhaling. "'M an alpha. My wife was an omega -- I'd a' known that smell anywhere."

"I'm a beta," Danny urges futilely.

"An omega?" Louis mutters in confusion.

"He's a beta, Louis, stay where you are," Steve snarls, still not taking his eyes off of Louis because now, to the alpha's horror, the other alpha is starting to sniff the air and glance flightily at Danny.

"Steve, I need to ah...leave. Right now," Danny breathes, and he can't help edging his hand toward his stomach wearily because his senses are on fire with the alpha stress in the room. His fangs are starting to elongate in his mouth and his claws are starting to pop because everyone in the room is staring at him. "Steve."

"I hear you, buddy," his alpha breathes slowly. "Everybody, let's just calm down. We're done with questioning for the day."

His omega brain finally compels him to slowly edge toward his mate. Just when he's barely made it a few steps, however, he feels someone wrench a hand on to the back of his neck, yanking him backwards.

"DANNY!" Steve yells, pulling his gun up and cocking it.

Louis Northamer has him in an omega grip, and he stands paralyzed.

"Get your fucking hands off me!" Danny seethes furiously through clenched teeth.

"I knew I could smell something sweet about you, cupcake," the man leers into his ear with hot

"LET HIM GO, don't be stupid Louis, just let him go," Steve growls, and Louis just laughs, sniffing at Danny's bondbite. "

"So this little thing is your mate, isn't he," Louis sneers, giving Danny's neck a jerk back for emphasis. "Guess I was wrong after all, you two fags probably got no interest in my pretty wife after all, huh Michelle?!"

The meek woman seizes the opportunity to rush forward, lip quivering.

"Louie baby -- please, just let'm go! Sweetie I think he really is expectin'!" Michelle pleads. With tears running down her face, she pulls on Louis's bicep as hard as he can. "This ain't right, baby, it ain't!"

He shoves her off with his free hand and her back slams into the nearest wall. A few photos fall off the wall. "That why you smell so good?" Louis huffs, flicking out his tongue to lick at the scent gland in his neck. "You lay him out and lick him like this?" He makes a show of tasting his neck and Danny hisses at the grotesque feeling. "He tastes so fucking good, and his skin's -- it's so fuckin' soft." His hand reaches lower to rest on his belly and Danny snarls.

No.

Just no.

Steve roars, eyes starting to darken with the telltale glistening black of a feral episode. "Let Detective Williams go, or I will shoot!"

"Steve he's not armed," Danny hisses.

"I just wanted to get a better look at him," Louis leers. "I haven't seen one of the male ones before, and here comes one waltzing into my den and pisses me the fuck off!"

"Son, let go!" Marvin wheezes, unstrapping his mask for a moment for coughing violently into another fit.

The omega's eyes are burning with hatred forced silent, and he looks up at Steve and lets out another snarl that tapers off embarrassingly into an unnerved whine as the alpha calls for immediate backup.

This is all his fault. His skin heats up in shame.

"LAST CHANCE," Steve roars.

Danny feels the guy hardening behind him as he starts to get sloppy and scent drunk, and the omega hisses furiously, baring his fangs.

"Uh oh, I think I made him mad," Louis purrs into his ear.

"Louis! Please, son, just let the poor thing go! You're gonna stress him into a damn early labor," Marvin shouts louder in his raspy voice, but Louis doesn't take his eyes off Steve's. Danny's eyes widen at marvin's words.

"Is that possible!?" Danny yells through his teeth, and it's embarrassingly high pitched.

Steve hand is shaking on the gun from the effort of not shooting his guy in the head. He's not legally allowed to kill. He's only legally allowed to incapacitate and physically overcome the guy. Still though, listening to Danny's heart rate quickening into a panic has Steve about to cut his losses and shoot. But Louis ruins his chance.

"You think you got a clear shot?" Louis snarls with a wicked grin, pulling himself behind Danny. "Wouldn't want to hurt the little brats, right?" He reaches lower to lift up Danny's shirt tails and drags greasy hand over Danny's belly. "They're just as scared as he is," Louis snarls at Steve digging his nails into the skin.

Danny finally howls.

Steve shoves the gun back into the holster and lunges forward. Louis lets up on his grip just long enough for Danny to swing up a foot behind him, straight into Louis's groin, and the greasy alpha doubles over in pain. Michelle screams, and somewhere behind him, Marvin is trying to growl through his mask buy he's half yelling and coughing at the same time.

Danny fully expects that he can get a a clear shot at the guy's leg from across the room and he scrambles up over the couch with his claws tearing into the upholstery.

Danny does not expect to see, when he turns around with his gun raised, that Steve has his fangs in the guys neck and is tearing away the skin.

Michelle screams again, but it fades away into a high pitched hum in Danny's ears.

"Steve! What-- what are you..." He breathes, backing up until he hits a bookshelf. This can't be real.

Steve's eyes are blown black and he's growling deafeningly loud, loud enough that it even upsets the pups. Danny's eyes widen in horror when Steve lifts his teeth from the guy's neck long enough to snarl at everyone, baring his teeth as blood drips down his chin. He's completely feral.

Arterial spray starts to spew up along the wall in wide arcs of red splatter and Danny has no choice but to dive forward, trying to drag Steve away from the other alpha that's now pale and shivering as he goes into shock.

Steve even snaps at him at first, and Danny hisses in surprise, before he just starts pulling Steve by one of his boots out of the room.

The alpha starts thrashing until they're on the linoleum floor of the kitchen. "Steven -- Steven stop!" He snarls, slamming the alpha's shoulders to the ground as he dives on top of him, but Steve wants to claw his way back to Louis -- to finish the job and kill him.

"You can't, babe, you can't kill him, you'll go to jail -- I need you! I can't do this alone," Danny pleads, trying to get him to come to. "Steve the pups, you have to be there with me, you can't go to jail! There are witnesses!"  
Steve finally roars at the omega pushing him into the corner of the kitchen for safety and pulls himself up enough to lunge toward the severely injured man to kill him.

Danny clenches his eyes shut, vocalizing out in agony because he knows what's about to happen and what the consequences will be, when the sound of a dart gun goes off.

And then, silence.

He opens his eyes,and Kono is standing before him in the kitchen, decked out head to toe in field gear, with the dart rifle in her sturdy, graceful arms. She looks down at Danny, poised above Steve's unconscious body.

"You okay?"

He nods.

"You're bleeding," she says, and Danny realizes for the first time that somewhere in the scuffle, Steve elbowed him in the face and split open his brow. It's bleeding all over one side of his face. "Let me take you both to the ER."

The detective shakes his head; "I can't go to a hospital."

Her eyes harden. "Why?"

"Because... ugh Jesus," Danny's face falls into his hands where he mutters the rest into his palms with a groan, hiding his eyes. "Because I'm an omega, I'm unregistered, and I'm pregnant." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What the what! Cat's out of the bag.
> 
> What did y'all think?


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a short little tid bit to tide y'all over :D

 

**xxxxxxxxxx**

  
Kono's eyes widen. "Excuse me, what?!" She cocks the dart gun on reflex and Danny eyes it wearily until she notices and lowers it.

"I'm not actually a beta," he whispers, pulling at the counter top to hoist himself off the floor.

"If this a joke, This isn't funny Danny," She swings her gun around on its strap over her shoulder.

"It's not funny because it's NOT a joke, Kono, I'm serious! Why do you think Steve went insane -- you saw him! For christ's sake Kono, he's never acted like this before!"

A slow moment passes and realization settles into Kono's dark eyes as she glances down at Danny's belly, which his hand is curled over.

"If this is true, then I'm less angry about the fact that you lied your ohana, and more fucking stunned that you were stupid enough to have even gotten involved in a situation like this."

Danny's shoulders fall. "Kono I didn't want --"

"Two nesting alphas under the same roof?! How the fuck did you think that was going to go!"

"Not like this, obviously," he hisses throwing up his hands. "And why are you assuming they're Steve's?!"

"Oh, PLEASE, _everyone_ knows that you two --"

"Everyone knows what?" Chin asks, appearing in the kitchen beside him like a fucking ninja, because Danny could neither hear him nor smell him over the lingering alpha stress. Danny jumps.

"Danny's been lying to us about being a beta, Chin, this whole fucking time. He's an omega, and he's only decided to tell us now because he has no choice -- he's fucking pregnant. Steve bred him, and no one thought we needed to know," Kono deadpans to Chin as she storms out of the house.

Chin's eyebrows shoot up into his hairline and he looks blankly at Danny for confirmation.

Danny wraps his arms around himself and nods.

"You two may be the most lolo white people I have ever met," Chin says slowly.

"C'mon chin," Danny hisses as social services start to come in and tend to Marvin and Michelle.  Louis has already been stabilized and rushed to a trauma center. "Do you think I wanted to lie to you two?! THRESH is breathing down our necks trying to find any excuse to bond-test Steve."

Chin rubs at his brow. "You're unregistered."

"I registered as a beta, with forged papers, when I first got to the islands. That's why I picked Hawaii, the time difference from Jersey makes it impossible to call in any suspicion at customs if you get in late."

"Look, I'm sorry for what you've had to go through, and you two were scared -- I get it. But I still would've thought Steve would have enough sense not to ask you to bring pups into the field with you under your tac vest."

"They're fine! I think I would know," Danny snaps, holding his stomach. The pups are tumbling around inside him, agitated from his raised voice and the lingering alpha stress.

"Luckily they are. But that's all it is, Danny, it's luck. And your luck could change next time." He glances down at Danny's swollen belly pointedly. "You need to keep them safe." 

Danny feels both frustrated and lower than _dirt_. "Chin, I--"

Chin shakes his head. "I'm next up in charge while the boss is out, and I say you and the _keikis_ lay low. Besides, internal affairs is going to get here soon, and they're going to start asking a ton of questions about what set Steve off." He stares Danny down sternly, and Danny raises up his hands.

"Fine." The omega mutters, wiping blood away from his eye with the back of his wrist, and, yeah, he must look pretty banged up.

  
**xxxxxxxxxx**

Kono is silent as she sets out for Steve's house across the island, and, in the back of the black suburban, the seal is deadweight in Danny's arms. 

Danny holds him close, quietly sighing against his neck while the Alpha's head is rest back on one of his shoulders, propped up against him. Between them, the pups are still pretty upset, and if Steve were awake, he'd be able to feel it against his back.

"How far along?" Kono asks suddenly, not taking her eyes off the road.

Danny blinks in slight surprise and pauses to think. "Ah... It'll be five and a half months, exactly, on Tuesday."

Her eyes flick up. "Wait. Steve was gone for a few months, brah."

  
"Yeah, he uh... he didn't know I was carrying." Danny looks down at Steve's serenely blank face. "Our bond bites were kind of an accident, a feral thing, and he didn't know how to come to terms with that..."

"So... you were pregnant when he tackled you at the office?!"

"Yes." Danny grimaces. "He definitely, definitely didn't know."

"Jesus." Her hands twist uneasily on the wheel. "When did _you_  find out?"

"I didn't figure it out for a few weeks because I forgot that I hadn't taken my hormone blocker that day -- the day of the dental office robbery," Danny explains. "That's part of why Steve lost contro. My pheromones got to him, and then his got to _me_ , and, well, we ended up...ah..." He trails off awkwardly, "Doing what we did."

He sees Kono frown again, glancing back at them. "You didn't take a carrying test or something after that?"

"No, I honestly had no idea. Was throwing up a lot, couldn't eat, felt exhausted all of the time; I thought I just had bond sickness from Steve being gone."

He pauses with a frown, remembering when he had to drag himself, a shivering mess of pale skin and bones, to Steve's bedroom to wrap himself in the sheets that -- thank God -- still smelled like his missing mate. It was the only thing that stopped the nightmares. "I didn't put two and two together until I woke up in one of Steve's closets."

Kono pulls a face. "A closet? I thought you were claustrophobic."

Danny raises his brows. "I am."

"Is that just something omegas do?"

Danny sighs flatly, ducking his eyes. "Only if we're carrying pups."

She pauses. "So it's like a nesting thing?"

Danny blushes. "Den...Nest. Something like that, I guess. Omegas don't make nests unless they're gonna have pups and there's no alpha around to make a one."

"This is pretty complicated," the beta mumbles, raising her bows.

"Yeah, I don't really get all of the pseudo primal derived instinct bullshit, I just.. Always heard this expression in old movies, 'an omega never goes into a nest alone.' So I woke up in the nest the next morning, confused as hell, and when I noticed where I was, I just kind of wanted to pretend that nothing was happening. But I knew. I knew when I woke up," Danny takes a wavering breath, because these memories that are flooding his system? They're not good ones.

  
"What'd you do?" Kono urges

Danny pauses, remembering waking up in the closet, and how he'd turned around in confusion while rubbing the back of his stiff neck.

_"What the f--"_

_There are sheets curled around him, along with a soft a pile of Steve's clothes arranged around him. The omega_ _reaches around, realizing that he's even shredded the pillows and scattered the stuffing around._

_Apparently he crawled in here and did all of this on instinct, while he was sleeping, and there's only one thing that this can mean._

_"Oh god, oh no, no no no," Danny breathes._

_He claws his way out, writhing in a tangle on the carpet until he can spring to his feet. As if it were burning him, he brushes off the remainder of cotton fibers and pillow shreds, and backs away from the nest so fast that he slams backward into a wall. "This isn't happening..."_

_His eyes are watering by the time he reaches the bathroom mirror and wrenches up the hem of his shirt. On his torso, patches of skin are showing through the hair on his chest and stomach._

_He's losing his chest hair, and he knows he can't delude himself into thinking that_ _he's suddenly developed alopecia._

_No._

_All of this -- he just made a nest for the first time in his life, and now his is hair falling out -- it's textbook Omega._

_He's heard of these symptoms before, when his mother sat him down and gave him 'the talk' when he secretly presented as omega._

_With a quivering hand, Danny stares in the mirror, biting the inside of his cheek as he slowly prods at the barely swelling surface of his stomach with his fingertips, feeling the hardness beneath the skin. It's not really noticeable to the eye, but something's there. Inside him._

_Holy fucking mother of God. Steve got him pregnant._

_Danny yanks his hand away, raising it to cover his mouth. He's known that something was happening -- changing -- in his body. What he had attempted to write off as stress from missing Steve, was something else entirely that the alpha had left Danny with._

_His pups._

_Danny's eyes turn red and steamy. "Steve," he pleads in the silence of the master bathroom. "Oh God..."_

_Danny's grateful that the house is empty when he starts howling out shamelessly for someone that won't hear him anyway._

_Exhuasted, he takes a steaming shower and tentatively maps over his changing body with fearful fingertips._

_With bitter resignation, he watches the rest of his hair shed from his torso as he drags a washcloth over the skin._

_Danny huffs out a wavering breath as he runs his fingers over suddenly smooth, bare skin and most definitely does not feel the lump in the back of his throat._

_And because alphas and omegas always have at least two pups at once, Danny can't even pretend that it's just one little stowaway in there._

_No. There's at least two -- maybe even three, but Danny's not a big guy like his mate._

_These little tiny things -- put there by Steve McGarrett -- living and growing in the deepest part of his belly, are dependant on him, and they're going to get a lot bigger._

_They're going to change his life._

_And, hopefully, that life involves Steve._

_Danny calls in sick and spends most of the day either sobbing not only from the stress of being separated from his mate, but now -- Jesus fuck -- because he's pregnant too, or also sobbing because he keeps looking up from sixteen positive pregnancy tests to the liquor cabinet with a longing so deep that it scares him._

_His hormones fall completely out of line over the next month while his body tries to provide for the growing pups despite the constant, taxing stress of being away from his mate._

_He wakes up most mornings in that fucking closet with a migraine, aching bones, and the morbidly pressing question of whether or not he can actually do this and, worse, whether he wants to do this. His list of options is short without being able to go to a real doctor, and a few of the options involve a back alley or throwing himself down a flight of stairs._

_He doesn't know if he'd be trying to kill himself or the pups in that last scenario and that thought usually sends him into a silent depression under the sheets in the closet._

_When Steve doesn't answer the phone for the twenty-third time the fifth morning, he starts leaving voicemails. Sometimes he just sighs into the phone and listens to the empty hum of the line._

_Desperate, Danny calls Steve's sister, Joe white, and even Catherine to try and find him._

_He never mentions the pups._

_The threat of THRESH somehow tapping one of their phones has him irrationally paranoid of even saying the word "pregnant" outloud._ _In fact, he goes searching after hours in the confiscated contraband room to steal three bottles of what is supposedly the strongest scent blocker available,  after being tipped off in an anonymous forum on one of the public library computers._

_No one can find out about this._

_He doesn't want a single person to catch his scent, grimly believing that if Steve knows about the pup situation, then it may throw a wrench into his getting over and internalization of whatever the fuck he thinks happened between the two of them. But the thought of never seeing the alpha again is starting to haunt him._

  
_About six nights later, at the end of the second month of Steve's absence, Danny has stopped eating. It causes and dizzyness and blackouts -- and he does blackout, that evening, while driving the Camaro home from work._

_Danny ends up with the tires stuck in the mud from a season of heavy rain, with the front of his car all scratched up from a bamboo forest that he's plowed into, and an ache low in his heart over the sudden realization that he almost killed not only himself but the only things he has left of Steve._

_The thought sends him into hysterics._

_He fucking breaks down on the muddy shoulder of the backroad, staring through tears at all of this godforsaken bamboo that might have just saved his own and his pups' lives._

_Kono is the first to reach him out of everyone that he calls. She's riding shotgun in Catherine's muscle car when they stop what they're doing to come get him, and he doesn't ask._

_In return, they don't ask why he's covered in mud, holding his stomach, and hyperventilating when they arrive._

_Between huffs into a paper bag, Danny says he needs to be dropped off at Steve's house instead of his own and they don't press the issue when he thanks them and somberly walks, bruised and stiff, up the front steps and shuts the door behind him._

_That night, he takes a hot shower, shaves for the first time in a week, and searches the kitchen for the bottle of pre-natal vitamins that Joe apparently bought the first time Steve caught him in a heat._

_He stares at the pills in his hand for a few minutes and realizes that he knows, finally, what he wants. He swallows the vitamins down with a glass of almond milk and makes himself grill a piece of salmon that he slowly tears at with a fork._

_He promises his pups silently, as he tentatively rubs Nivea lotion on his belly that night, that he won't let anyone hurt them, especially not himself, and whispers out loud that he's sorry. F_ _or everything._

_A week later, Steven McGarrett walks into Five-0._

_Danny is so equally thrilled and furious and terrified to tell Steve about the babies that he can't act on any of the emotions and just blankly sits. Waits._

_He's staring down at a piece of paper that his eyes are refusing to actually read, with a racing heart and quivering breath, when his Alpha's scent permeates his office._

_It's the first gasp of air for Danny after drowning for almost three months, and his eyes automatically get red and steamy. But he's too furious at Steve to let him see tears ever again._

_"I caught your scent as you walked in," the omega says quietly, but what he means is I didn't know if I'd ever catch that scent again._

_"Danny," is all Steve can say when he approaches slowly. Under the desk, the omega's hand spreads tightly_ _across his belly because his pups are hearing their father's voice for the first time._

Kono is calling his name, but he doesn't hear her until the third time. She asks him again, what he did when he found out.

"I made a lot of bad decisions," he sighs. "And then I finally made a good one." The corners of his mouth curl up gently before he looks down at Steve and frowns again. He's starting to stir in his arms, eyes half open as he slurs something in confusion at the fact that he's in a car. 

Danny leans forward to rub his own scent on him with the markers in his wrists and neck, and Steve settles against him, calming down.

Danny is starting to calm down, too, until his phone starts buzzing frantically at his hip. 

He lifts the phone up to his ear to listen to the voicemail and instantly feels his nerves falling back into a state of unease.

"Oh fuck."

It's the Governor, explaining solemnly that he wants Steve to come in and turn himself in in the morning for a formal inquiry with the Board of Law Enforcement, where they will review his statement and actions.

They'll be deciding if he needs to be checked into Alpha rehab. 

Danny leans back against the car door with a whine.

Danny knows that the only valid defense Steve could offer that the board will accept would require Steve to reveal that he was protecting his omega and their unborn pups.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Let me know what you think! I'm presenting an argument in front of a judge today and I'm so nervous that I might throw up.**
> 
>  
> 
> **So any comments to cheer me up later as I sob into cheap liquor would be much appreciated ;'(**
> 
>  
> 
> **I'm just as nervous as Danny is.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait y'all, it's crunch time at school!

**xxxxxxxxxx**

Steve wakes up in corner of his walk in shower.

He smells the blood of another Alpha.

_Tastes it on his fangs._

Instantly, his hackles are up and the alpha snarls.

"You with me, buddy?" Danny whispers slowly near his ear as warm hands start to rub his shoulders under the warm water.

  
Steve stills for a moment. "Omega," Steve whispers, and his mouth feels dry like cotton.

"Ah... Yes," Danny huffs a feeble attempt at a laugh. "But I have a name."

Steve turns toward the delicious smell drifting through the steam, pausing to take in the sight of his mate in the golden glow of the single candle up on the ledge above them. His omega is gorgeous, and the alpha takes his face in both hands, staring at him intently, before leaning in to inhale his wet skin, tasting it.

"You're gonna do the check-me-head-to-toe thing aren't you," his mate sighs, patiently allowing Steve to check him over for injuries. The alpha catalogues every single bruise and cut, whining when he gets to the gash on Danny's forehead.

He reaches out and pulls the omega across his lap, and the blonde just lays there, letting himself be manhandled and checked over, inch by inch, by his feral partner. When he gets to Danny's swollen belly, he cocks his head slightly, letting out a low whine of confusion.

Danny raises his brows, meaning to sit up, but Steve forces him to lay back down with just a bit too much force. "Oomph," Danny grunts, holding his stomach nervously. "Steve -- be gentle."

  
The alpha frowns at him like he doesn't understand. Steve is quiet, leaning forward to sniff at his skin.

The bump smells sweet. Like his mate, but sweeter.

It also smells like him.

His ears lower and stretch back in further confusion as he frowns -- is this why his mate smells so vulnerable all of the time -- is this why he has to guard his den so well right now? He whines again.

Danny sighs, taking his hand and laying it flat over the bump. "Pups. Our pups are in here... Do you understand what I'm saying? Pups?" The blonde frowns.

Barely a few seconds have passed before something moves in his mate's rounded belly under his huge hand. Steve barks out in surprise and his alpha brain finally processes what's happening to his mate.

His alpha half is over the moon, howling excitedly with his tail wagging somewhere in the back of his mind.

Nuzzling the skin with his nose and mouth, Steve keens against him, gently gathering him closer. Danny rests against him, lets himself be doted on and scrubbed clean with a washcloth lathered up with Irish Spring soap, and, while Steve holds him in a tangle against his chest, the omega lathers up their skin and rinses off the dried blood from everywhere he can reach.

Finally when he calms down, he lets Danny scoot behind him -- on the warm tile floor of the walk in shower -- and start scrubbing him clean.

It's cathartic almost, up and down and back and forth Danny gently rubs the soap and washcloth. The candle starts to burn low and he starts humming something that echoes around the tile enclosure.

Finally, in the last few flickers of the candle, after a long silence, Steve suddenly clears his throat. "Did I kill him, Danny?"

The omega pauses, pulling Steve back against him so he can rest his chin on his shoulder. "No. You didn't kill Louis."

Steve exhales long and slow, steeples his hands up over his nose and mouth like he's silently thanking God, and turns slowly in the thick steam.

"How long have we been in here?" He asks softly, glancing down at fingertips that are more than a little pruney.

Danny leans back, resting a hand over his abdomen where baby A is poking him repeatedly with a tiny hand. He glances down. "Stop it you little brat," he murmurs, holding the spot. After a second he looks up and blinks because Steve is smiling down at Danny's belly.

The omega's shoulders fall and he reaches up to twist off the now tepid water. They both instantly feel a chill, but the tiles are still warm.

"Babe, I have to talk to you," he begins with a sigh, and Steve looks instantly alarmed. Bad choice of words, Danny thinks, but continues. "We have to go in front of a panel, tomorrow, and talk about what happened today."

Steve freezes. "A panel?"

" The State Board of Law Enforcement."

Instantly, his alpha is on the defensive. "What more is there to tell?!" He asks. "A rogue alpha sexually assaulted my partner! I incapacitated him."

Danny bites his lip. "Steven, I know, and I'm so thankful... But..." he begins slowly. "But you bit somebody in the neck..."

"What happened to full immunity and means?!"

"Babe it's just that you --"

"I what Danny? I'm too dangerous for society? I'm a loose cannon? I've heard it all before!" The alpha growls, and Danny winces at the sound.

"I'm not saying that they want to attack you personally -- I'm not saying that," Danny snaps. "What I'm saying is that there are witnesses… and bite wounds. There's evidence, Stephen, and the board just wants an explanation. That's all they want."

"Or what? No more five 0?"

Danny is silent.

"What, Danny?"

The omega wraps his arms around himself, shivering and cold suddenly. "Or they put you back in alpha Rehab."

Steve's jaw clenches shut and he huffs air slowly out of his nose. "Oh." They're both silent for a long moment, staring somberly at each other in the flickering light that castes long shadows on their faces.

Without a word, Steve stands and yanks a towel off the rack for his waist.

Danny waits patiently until Steve remembers that he can't stand up from the bottom of the shower without him and it takes a good two minutes before the alpha comes rushing back in to the bathroom, muttering an apology as he pulls his pregnant mate to his feet.

By midnight they're both dressed with wet tousled hair under the unforgiving light that hangs over he kitchen table. "So, okay, I just go up there and tell them the truth."

Danny slumps back in his chair, bringing up his hands in exasperation. "Steve, babe, we've been over this a thousand and one times --"

Steve slams his hand down on the table. "And I keep fuckin' coming back to it! I just tell them I was defending my partner!"

"His wife was pregnant -- IS pregnant -- Steve! And we were in his house!"

"So that gives him the right to grab MY pregnant mate and--"

"Stop it! I told you, Steve, to them I am a chubby little beta! They cannot know about the pups!" Danny waves a hand at him. "If Louis says we provoked him, he's got the Pregnant Mate defense, and you don't!"

Steve grabs his hair. "How the fuck is this happening! This isn't JUSTICE!"

Danny laughs out loud bitterly at the word. "This is justice. Welcome to trying to establish a Prima Facie case on the elements of a defense."

"So what are the elements of the defense?"

Danny grabs a piece of paper.  
"Okay.  
He's a nesting alpha --"

"So am I --"

"(2)," he says loudly, "he can say we provoked him."

"How?"

"We brought guns into his house?"

"But you weren't..."

"Doesn't matter. (3) he'll have to prove that he reasonably believed you posed a threat to his wife, and (4) he will have to prove that he only attacked the threatening intruder."

"Louis isn't even going to BE there!" Steve snarls at the thought of him, shoving his chair back as a screech as he starts toward the liquor cabinet. "Why the fuck are we so caught up in defenses and ... And elements?"

"Because this is what he's going to come at us with and we need to anticipate this Steven!"

He leans against the counter top. "Well where in that list of elements is the fact that you're carrying MY pups? Huh? And he provoked ME by grabbing you!"

Danny stands up from his chair so fast that he gets light headed. "Because you get locked up for aiding and abetting an omega, that's why! Either way, I fucking lose you!" His eyes start to water.

"We should run."

"WHAT?!"

Steve rounds on him, fangs starting to pop in his mouth. "You heard me."

"I'm not GOING ON THE RUN -- which is impossible on a goddamn island, even if I wasn't three months away from giving ... birth! And FUCK I hate that word," Danny snarls. "I should just get up there and speak instead!"

"What -- no!"

"I should do it. I should talk instead," Danny breaks down, letting himself fall back against a wall where he slides down and crumples to the floor in a heap. "That's the only way this will work out! I have to get up there and tell them about me, tell them about us, tell them about --"

  
"About what, Danny?" Steve says solemnly, feeling his own eyes water. His mate is absolutely broken -- because of him, because he lost control.

Again.

"I have to t-tel them, About..." The omega shutters with a heaving sob and buries his face in his hands, taking wavering breaths. "About my babies." He looks up at Steve with broken, red rimmed ice blue eyes and glistening cheeks. "And then they'll take me instead, Steve..."

The alpha huffs out a low, pained howl. "Danny, no..."

"THRESH taking me to their facility has to be better than... Than..." He cries quietly into his hands, shoulders quivering. "I can't let them lock you up for trying to protect me."

"But Rehab... I've already made it through a round of that, Danny, I mean, it's not so bad!"

"For a multiple offender, Steven?! Last time you were there, didn't they tell you what could happen?"

Steve is silent, wiping at his eyes, and nods, realizing that he hadn't considered this. He hasn't even thought about what happens to a multiple offender.

"They could lobotomize you," his mate hisses, folding his face into his hands as he leans over his legs.

Steve slides down to the floor next to Danny, numbly wrapping his arms around him.

"Hey, hey. Danny. We're gonna figure a way out of this."

But even Steve doesn't know if that's true.

**xxxxxxxxx**

The next morning neither the alpha not his omega can eat.

Steve still forces Danny to at least drink a bottled protein shake; he blocks the door with his hulking figure, more intimidating than usual because he's in his Navy uniform.

"First of all, this is not the morning to pick a fight with me," Steve growls, "and, secondly, You're almost six months on with the pups, and the three of you aren't leaving this den without getting some protein."

"We don't actually know that there's only two in there," the Omega mumbles as he bares his neck in submission and finally grabs the chalky vanilla tasting shake. "And now, who the fuck knows when we'll find out."

The comment reminds Steve that he has to cancel their ultrasound with Dr. Alexei, and the alpha sighs as he storms out of the house.

He explains the situation as evenly as possible over the phone to Alexei but he feels like he ends up half venting to the guy.

The doctor is patient enough to listen to the story about the other alpha and the hearing, and even tries to comfort him by wishing them good luck and saying he'll check on them after.

Danny joins him in the car as Steve explains to the doctor that he doesn't know what's going to happen, but ends the call by giving the doctor Danny's cell number as well as Chin's for good measure.

"Steve, could you at least try to think more positively about this...or should we order you some shivs and striped clothes before we even get in there?"

Steve turns to shoot his mate a look and revs the huge engine of the Camarro to life. "I'm not trying to be positive, I'm trying to be practical."

Danny sighs loudly at that, but doesn't pull his hand away when the alpha grabs his and threads their fingers together.

**xxxxxxxxx**

They get a glance of the board room when a bailiff opens a large heavy door ten minutes before their hearing.

The boardroom looks suspiciously like a courtroom.

There's cherry hardwood panelling all around the room, an American flag, the Hawaii State Flag, worn maroon carpeting, and a few gold seals fixed to the wood behind the line of people at the desk.

And then the door shuts, and they're left to imagine every worst scenario they can conjure up without abandon.

Steve is in his dress blues, and Danny, like always, straightens his tie for him as they sit in the glossy tiled hallway outside of the room where the panel review will be held.

The omega is wearing a sweater vest -- in the stifling heat of Waikiki -- in an attempt to hide his growing middle, but now he's asking Steve in a panic if it's actually drawing more attention to his stomach. Steve says no, but Danny's belly button has now popped out (as of that morning?) and there's absolutely no doubt, in Steve's opinion, as to what's under Danny's shirt.

He lies. "You look fine, Danny."

"You're making the 'I'm going to lie so Danny doesn't freak out' face, which is, because it is only two notches down from 'aneurism face,' easy to recognize, and thank you, now I am freaking out even worse!" The blonde hisses, and he swears when he looks down to see that his fingernails have started to elongate into claws.

Steve looks down at the claws on Danny's fingers and swiftly moves an arm behind Danny's shoulders to grip the back of his neck to comfort him.

"Come on, babe. Put your claws away," The alpha murmurs, but he knows it's not as easily done as said. The omega shuts his eyes, snarling low at him in annoyance until his fingertips shift back to his normal dull fingernails.

When an officer leans out of the door and announces 'McGarrett,' they both jump slightly, but Steve manages to keep his nerves under control, if not only for Danny's sake. Th omega is shaking when Steve places a guiding hand on the small of Danny's back, so he walks closely behind him all the way to the section of seating along the back of the room; rows of dark heavy benches.

It's almost like a small section of church pews, which, Steve muses grimly, is fitting, considering the amount of praying that probably happens here.

He steps up to the podium, glancing submissively up at two men and one woman, and feels their eyes boring holes straight through him.

They are all Betas, which means the luckily won't be able to scent that Danny is an omega if he starts to sweat from nerves, but also means that they will be hard to turn toward his point of view as an alpha.

Fuck.

He grips the podium with white knuckles, feeling his fangs lengthen slightly in his mouth.

_Fuck fuck fuck._

"For the panel's review, Lieutenant Commander Steven J. McGarret, director of Five-0, special task force established by the presiding Governor of Hawaii."

The bailiff, sheriff, officer-- or whatever he is -- announces him and he suddenly has the eerie feeling that this must have been what the Salem Witch Trials were like.

For the witches.

"Lieutenant," one of the men begins, "you're here today to explain your actions, the nearly fatal bite to civilian Louis Northamer while representing the law enforcement community of Hawaii in your capacity as director of Five-0."

"Yes sir," Steve says calmly. "Well yesterday I--"

"You may proceed by relaying to us the chain of events leading up to the bite, Mr. McGarret, and nothing else." A man with wiry white hair and small round glasses looks sufficiently annoyed that he has spoken out of turn.

Steve glances behind him at Danny, who mirrors his bewildered expression before he looks back at the panel.

He tells them about the case, and explains how he and his betas are investigating anyone who has had a significant connection to the farm and interviewing them about any strange occurrences on the property.

"Is that your lead Beta?" One of the men asks skeptically, probably suspicious because of Danny's size. The omega glares up at the man but looks to Steve to implore the alpha to give the guy some sort of explanation.

Steve feels his heart race a bit quicker. "That's... Ah... That's my partner. Detective Williams. We were in the middle of questioning the old man, when Louis Northamer suddenly became convinced that my partner was looking at his wife. We couldn't get him to calm down and when we tried to leave, Louis physically restrained Danny and began to... to grope him, and sexually assaulted him right in front of me."

The woman speaks up, his dark brown hair twisted back in a severe bun, but there are soft bangs falling across his brow. "I cannot imagine the amount of anger that you must have felt at that point, and we are taking that into consideration. But do you think, Mr. McGarrett, that the fact that this happened in front of you should excuse you from liability for Mr. Northamer's injury?"

Steve feels his mouth run dry, and hopes he doesn't look as nervous as he feels. "Of course not, ma'am, but as an alpha, I am protective of my team, and this was a particularly provoking sight."

"We are aware of your subgender and its consequential impediments on your psyche," snaps a heavyset auburn haired man in his late fifties.

Danny huffs loudly in his seat behind Steve and the alpha hears him mutter something particularly vicious under his breath regarding the middle aged man board member.

"Mr. McGarrett, the Alpha Provocation defense is only available to nesting alphas," she's giving Danny a skeptical expression over his shoulder. "Louis Northamer will likely invoke this defense against the state, which is why we are preemptively holding this private panel today."

Steve nods, swallowing.

"Why then did you lose control?" The wiry haired man asks. "You have been in multiple situations involving potential harm or even sexual assault of an officer."

The woman nods, lifting up a paper. "Kono kalakaua was forced to strip to prove she wasn't wearing a wire during a case two years ago. You didn't lose control then. Why?"

Steve is quick to rebut this. "I wasn't right next to her, I couldn't... I couldn't smell her fear. And I'm closer to Danny -- detective Williams."

"If you're saying that proximity to the threat, the smell of fear, and the strength of your bond with the particular beta are all factors, then why is it, commander, that you did not experience a feral black out when Detective Williams was the target of a motion sensing explosive?"

Steve draws a blank and his hackles raise. "Ah..."

One of the men steeples his hands in front of him. "Wasn't he both next to you and afraid at that time?"

The alpha grips the podium in frustration. "Well yes, but..."

_...Danny's pregnant now. Everything's changed. Everything I care about is wrapped up inside one person and I have to protect him._

His mind keeps forming the words and his tongue is burning to shout them, scream them at these people that don't understand, and behind him Danny is growing more and more nervous.

**xxxxxxxxx**

For the next half hour, they continue to grill Steve on every single detail about the bite -- about what moment he actually lost control, what moment he regained control, and whether there were any weapons either drawn or in reach. It's difficult to keep his story straight, considering he's having to leave half of it out.

Finally, as Steve is mentally worn down, his edited memories have been sufficiently picked and poked and prodded in his skull by their cutting remarks and invasive questions.

"You may take a seat, McGarret," the auburn man snaps finally. The woman follows him with her eyes and furrows her brows when Danny places a hand on the top of Steve's knee when he sits and leans to whisper to him.

Steve stares straight back at her, imploring her to realize what's going on without him having to formally say it before they get up to convene in a private room.

  
Suddenly the door to the board room eased open.

Steve instantly turned his head at the familiar smell, and the sound of tears.

There's a pause in the flow of the hearing, and the board members -- who had been just standing up to leave for the room to make a decision -- all quietly turn to stare at the woman the bailiff is escorting in.

It's Michelle Northamer.

The air around Steve is instantly permeated with Danny's distress as he folds his arms tightly to his chest and

The bailiff stands at the edge of the seating area. "She changed her mind -- said she does wanna speak."

Steve is grateful, though his mouth is still dumbly hanging open, because for two seconds there's no focus on him, but Jesus he was not expecting this.

"Mr. Mcgarrett, Mrs. Michelle Northamer is here to give her account of the story."

The alpha nods dumbly as the pregnant woman timidly approaches the podium, clutching a dusty tote bag as a purse. Next to him, Danny makes a sound of discomfort.

"What?" Steve murmurs, turning to lean close to his mate.

"Fucking synching with her!" Danny hisses back, holding his head. "Her hormones, and mine they like... Start to match up... Feels like being spun around a lot and uh... Sat back down or somethin'."

He wavers in his seat, as if he's about to fall forward. "Danny!" He says a little loudly, pressing his partner back to the seat, and when he looks up the whole room is staring at them, including Michelle.

She looks worried.

"Commander McGarrett, I am aware that you alphas do live your attention, but could you manage to allow this woman her chance to speak?"

The alpha nods curtly, whispering to Danny to keep it together for another half hour.

"Is he gonna be okay?" Michelle asks suddenly, her soft voice coming over the microphone.

Steve blinks in surprise, nodding.

  
"Just ignore them, please. We'll try not to keep you on your feet too long, Mrs. Northamer," the older man says sweetly, regaining her attention, and Michelle nods up at them, smiling shyly.

But she's shaking.

And as soon as Steve hears her talk, he knows why.

  
"There's somethin' that I ah...gotta' show yous, that isn't gonna' have the same effect if I just say the words, ya know?" She says into the mic, opening the tote bag.

It's a bag of baby wipes, which really isn't too shocking in itself, but what she does with them stuns them all silent.  
She reaches up and drags the wipe down one side of her face, smearing off her make up.

She has a black eye. Her skin is a terrible collection of bright purple, green and yellow bruises.

Steve puts a hand over his mouth.

"Mrs. Northamer! My word, dear, is that from the McGarret's feral episode?!" The woman on the panel exclaims.

Steve bites down on the inside of his cheek hard enough to draw blood.

"This ain't from him. It ain't from the little blonde one either," she says with a quivering voice on the verge of tears. "This is from Louis, the morning Five-0 showed up ta question us. Ya wanna know why?" She takes a heaving breath. "I got this 'cause I burnt his fuckin' breakfast."

"Has Mr. Northamer ever hurt you before?" The auburn man asks slowly.

"Years, nonstop. Said he'd kill me if I went to the police. I wanted to try to fly back home to New York but he kept control ovah all the money." She nods, fresh tears sliding down her face. "That bite was the best ting that coulda' happened to that bastard!"

Steve pinches himself on the arm. This can't actually be happening.

"Mrs Northamer, we can help you press charges against Louis afterwards. But, regardless of whether or not Louis was a good man, we can't have out of control Alphas roaming the state with badges. Would you start by telling us how, exactly, Mr. McGarrett came to be provoked?"

"Sure sure," she says quickly. "Thank you. Well, my husband grabbed the little blonde one, started uh... Touching him in appropriately, I think just to make the alpha one mad. Started sayin' things improper like, eggin' the big one an' all, and -- "

"What exactly did he say?" The auburn haired man interjects.

"The heck does it matter what he said!" Danny hisses loudly and the bailiff points at him, gesturing for him to shut the hell up and stay quiet.

Michelle hesitates, "uh.. Just mean things, ya know? I uh... I don't remembah ezzactly."

Steve hear's her heart rate speed up, and he nervously nudges Danny. "She's lying."

Danny makes a low noise in reply, but he's hunched over, and his eyes are still clenched shut from whatever this synching thing is that omegas are apparently able to do. Steve's gonna have to ask Alexei about that.  
  
When he looks up again toward the board members, the auburn haired man is leaning toward the microphone to ask her a question.

"Now, ma'am, did you feel threatened by McGarrett?"  
"Not 'til his fangs popped and he was growlin' but that was only after Louis provocated him. I would've reacted the same way, honest ta God," she swears, raising up her right hand.

"Who was the first aggressor in this incident?" The woman asks, frowning intently.

Michelle leans against the podium with both arms. "My low-life husband."

"And who was the first person to inflict physical harm?"

"Again; Louis. He's pretty good at harming people, let me tell ya. I would know."

  
"And upon whom was that initial physicality inflicted?"  
She asks.

Michelle hesitates.

Was it Steve McGarrett?

No, she says, glancing sing back towards the pan to lock eyes with them wearily as if to say she's stepping into thin ice and know what to do. "It was the blonde one, the detective."

The old wiry haired man frowns. "But both of your accounts dispell any mention of direct physical harm to detective Williams, other than the innapropriate grabbing and verbal assaults. Was there more to the story that you have left out?"

Michelle is silent.

The auburn haired man is incensed. "Need I remind you, Mrs Northamer, that you are speaking under oath, and any thing you omit or lie about could result in your incarceration for perjury!"

Michelle starts wringing her hands. "He was starting to cut him with his claws."

The woman looks over to McGarrett. "commander, is this true?"

Steve clears his throat. "He did start using his claws at one point."

"Before you attacked him?"

"Yes."

"And he drew blood?"

Steve is silent, fearful of where this string of questions is leading.

"Yeah," Michelle replies instead. "Louis started it all."

The wiry haired man looks down at Danny. "Detective, where did he cut you?"

Danny stands up, slowly, and Steve discreetly steadies him with a hand on the small of his back. "On my torso."

"And did you receive medical treatment to present proof of this?"

Fuck.

Glancing at his alpha to lock eyes with him first, Danny shakes his head. "Ah... No."

"Detective Williams, if you have no proof of the scratches then -- unless you were to show them to us -- we have nothing but verbal provocation, which, as anyone familiar with assault and battery charges knows, is not enough of a provocation as able to make a reasonable, prudent alpha lose control over his instincts," the woman frowns.

"The smell of blood is a reasonable provocation to protect a lov-- someone you have a pack bond with," Danny argues.

"Like we said, detective; not without proof," the middle aged man snaps. "You may sit down."

Danny glares at the man but sighs as he eases himself back to his seat.

  
"Considering that there was no reasonable provocation for your actions, Mr. McGarrett, this hearing is adjourned pending either a criminal charge of assault and alpha battery with the intent to kill or seriously injure; or a civil violation of statutory alpha behavior regulations which will result in mandatory alpha rehab for six months with permanent behavior deterrents."

"Deterrents?!" Danny snarls, "you're gonna let him go to prison and ruin his record or get doped up by hormone therapy implants the rest of his life because of a fucking technicality? Because I didn't go to the er?!"

"Detective Williams, sit down and contain yourself!"

The omega is furious, and when Steve tries to grab him to make him sit down Danny rounds on him and hisses at him.

If he didn't have the attention of everyone before, he does now. Because Betas can't hiss.

  
Steve lets his face fall into his hands, unable to let anyone look him in the eyes, but Danny continues.

"You wanna know why I didn't go to a hospital to get a fucking bandaid slapped on me? Because Steven was unconscious when I took him home. He was darted with a tranquilizer gun -- for trying to protect me." He swings up a hand to point at him own chest.

The board members are silent, blinking at him in shock at his outburst, but Danny doesn't let up, and instead approaches the podium.

"I can't let this go any further for him," Danny sighs. "He's too good of a man, and that's why he's here in the first place. I'll show you the scratch marks. They're on my stomach -- and you'll also know why it set Commander McGarrett off."

Steve springs up next to him, grabbing him by the shoulder desperately. "What are you doing?! Danny, stop! Just let me go, I can handle myself in prison -- I've done it before!"

Danny shoves Steven off and wrenches up the hem of his shirt, revealing his smooth, rounded belly. The board members gasp.

"What in the hell?" The auburn haired man snaps, putting on his glasses to stare at Danny's distended abdomen. "Detective what is wrong with your stomach?!"

Just under his popped navel, there are five jagged scratches from Louis's nails.

"If you take him from me, I won't live long enough to see him return," Danny says finally, staring down and away because he can't believe he's doing this; "And our pups won't survive either."

"Detective -- ?" The old man begins flatly.

"Let me spell it out for you guys. I'm an omega," he explains, looking into all of their shocked and confused faces. "Commander McGarrett is my mate. And, as you can see, I'm ah... Well," He glances down at his belly. "I'm carrying his pups."

"You are confirming, detective, that Steven is in fact a nesting alpha?"

"Yes. He is." The omega nods, lowering his shirt.

"How far along are you?" The woman asks.

"About six months."

"This is preposterous; we have no way of knowing if that's true! I demand an X-Ray!" The middle age man bellows at the woman.

Steve growls from his seat and claps a hand over his mouth in apology, covering his fangs.

The woman smiles. "I think Commander McGarrett knows as well as I do that the radiation from an X-Ray could harm the babies. Is that what you're vocalizing about over there, commander?"

Steve nods quietly. "Yes ma'am. I would prefer to submit some other kind of proof."

"He really is expecting though, my father in law -- even though the guy is as old as Methuselah, God love him -- he can still smell anything about anyone like a bloodhound," Michelle begins frantically, waving her hands excitedly.

"And he told you of Detective william's pregnancy in an unsolicited comment?" The oldest man inquires slowly.

"He randomly told us all what was goin' on with the blonde one, and then Louis said he could smell it on him too." Michelle nods, folding her hands matter of factly over her belly. "That was when they tried to leave, but Louis decided to be a brute about it..."

Danny nods at her Michelle in thanks, and turns back to the board. "You can see where he dug his claws into my skin," he gingerly brings a hand under his pregnant stomach to drag his finger tips gently along the barely healed scratches. "And when my mate smelled my blood, and saw the claws against my stomach, he lost control."

The woman is the first to speak. "Detective Williams, first of all, I'd like to congratulate you both, and say that I appreciate your bravery -- I know what you're doing isn't easy," she urges with a soft smile.

Danny nods with a blush and spreads a palm protectively over his lower belly as the two men continue to scrutinize him incredulously.

"But," the woman continues, smile faltering, "I trust that you are aware that some changes will have to be made, for you and your career, pending proof from an ultrasound and Doctor's statement, as I can see that your license says 'Beta.'"

"And a call will be made to THRESH, most definitely," the auburn haired man snaps.

Danny nods, feeling his shoulders fall and he can hear a low whine from Steve's direction.

The woman nods. "Also, unfortunately, the state has never handled a case involving two nesting alphas fighting. Because there's no precedent case ruling in Steven's favor, there is a chance that Louis's claim could prevail over McGarrett's, simply because the incident took place in Louis's home."

"Actually, there's no chance of that." Danny turns to the DA, walking toward the podium, and Michelle steps aside to take a seat. The omegas hands are quivering as he grips the podium with white knuckles.

"Do explain," the red head sighs, "since you obviously believe you know the laws so well, perhaps better than the board does."

"I do not profess that I know the laws better than you all," Danny says waving up a hand sharply. "I do profess that I know the elements to this defense like the back of my hand, because I worked homicide for ten years in New Jersey, dealing with hormonal Alphas."

"The elements to The nesting alpha defense consist of:  
A nesting alpha  
Is reasonably provoked  
By genuinely perceiving an imminent threat to its mate  
And attacks only the threatening interloper.

Which element will you be focusing on, detective?"

"All four of those elements have to be met to establish a valid Alpha Defense, correct?" Danny leans into the microphone.

The panel nods.

All Danny has to do is show that Louis can't meet at least one of those four elements, and Steve, who meets them all, will win and go free. "Imminent threat."

Middle aged man sighs heavily. "How was it that Louis Northamer was not perceiving an imminent threat because of two armed officers entering his home?"

"First of all -- do I look like a threat to you?" He gestures at his stomach. "I'm stuffed to the gills. So don't include me in this, the guy had about a foot and a half on me and Louis knew I was a carrying omega when he grabbed me." He glares at the red headed guy and turns back toward the other two. "And second, I would argue that it is impossible for Louis to have rationally perceived what was an imminent threat to his mate."

"And why is that, Detective?"

"Because Louis Northamer obviously physically abused his wife, that very morning apparently. Louis was clearly the biggest imminent threat to his wife that day and every other day. He created a hostile situation in his own home when there was no need for it. And once he knew I was an omega, he knew he could..."

Danny bites down on the inside of his cheek as his eyes start to water and shine under the lights. "He knew he could incapacitate me by gripping the back of my neck. He knew that when he grabbed me, and that upset Steve."

"So you're saying that because Louis wasn't threatened by you, and because Steven was not the first aggressor, Louis was acting of his own volition when he started the altercation and was not reasonably provoked by an imminent threat?"

"Yes ma'am."

"And you propose that Louis was the biggest threat to his wife in the first place given his history of abuse," the old man leans back, polishing his glasses pensively.

"Yes, sir. And I'm saying that Steve was provoked by the smell of my blood. Louis was in control of his actions and still chose to... Threaten the pups."

The two men gasp. "Detective what did Mr. Northamer say?"

"He said he wanted to take them, claim them and myself as his own. Louis said he wanted to..." Danny ducks his head, his skin is still heating into a fierce blush. "He said he'd breed me. Then, he dug his nails into the skin of my belly, and growled that the pups were... as scared as I was."  
A deep heavy sigh escapes the omega as he leans heavily on the podium. "It felt like he was about to cut me open."

The board members look shocked.

"My word!" The oldest man exclaims.

The woman looks sick.

**xxxxxxxxxx**

Thankfully, Danny's argument wins the board over, with a two to one vote that Steve was reasonably provoked, unlike Louis Northammer. The board explains that they will give the transcript of the hearing over to the district attorney, with their express recommendation that Steve not be charged with any criminal offenses.

They go on to explain that Michelle is to be assisted with filing a claim of domestic abuse against Louis, and Louis will be charged with three counts of battery for grabbing Danny when he recovers in the hospital.

Steve and Danny feel a weight lifting off of their shoulders, but they know what's coming next.

"Regarding your status as an unregistered Omega," the oldest man begins. "You understand, now, Detective, that we have to report you to thresh."

"Yes." Danny nods solemnly and Steve grips his forearm hard enough to leave a bruise. The omega bites back a forlorn whine.

"They will contact you this week. We will however, be meeting with the director of thresh to explain your unique circumstances, and your vital role in the Five - 0 team, in an attempt to compromise between your career and your responsibility for your soon to arrive pups..."

Danny nods, hopeful for once, that things won't turn out too bad for them, and it's so far removed from the overbearing sadness of last night that it almost makes him smile.

"What about him?" Danny asks impatiently, glancing at his mate to his side.

"We of course have to punish Steve for his involvement, but we have decided that 100 hours of community service over the next two years will suffice. Such avenues of service as speaking to teens about their rights if arrested, teaching women self defense, or visiting elementary schools are perfectly suitable," the woman smiles. Steve grins graciously, nodding to her.

"She continues. "As far as Social Services, Mrs Northammer," they begin, turning to Michelle, "someone will be by your home to meet with your Father in law. You can expect--"

The door creeps open and, of all people to interrupt a hearing, it's the governor.

"Boss?" Steve begins uncertainly, furrowing his brows.

The oldest man looks a bit flustered. "Uh, yes? Governor? Can we help you? You can see we're rather occupied at the moment..."

The governor nods. "My apologies for interrupting, Sir. But we've unearthed more bodies by the same killer; it's a new site. A goddamn killing field."

Danny's eyes widen and Steve takes a huge slow breath, glancing up at the board members pointedly, because he needs to get his ass down to the scene before evidence is destroyed by the crew.

The three board members are shocked, looking at each other in bewilderment, and Danny finally speaks up.

"Look, alright. Thank you, thank you for everything. And thank you Michelle, sweetheart," he says turning around to smile at her. "We'd love to stay, but we're Five-0 and you know what that means."

"Uh, you are... Dismissed then, gentlemen," the woman says as they start to gather their personal items to fly the hell out of the door.

"Dis is so exciting," Michelle whispers in awe as they start to exit the room, and Steve gives her a half hearted smile.

"It won't be when we get there," he says quietly, walking past, and Danny exhales out of his nose.

The governor turns to them to brief them, once the door is shut, but he's surprised to find, when he turns around, that Steve has caught Danny in a passionate kiss.

"You've got two minutes." The governor waves a hand up dismissing himself. "I'll be in the parking lot when you two fools are done with this Days-of-our-Lives sope opera shit."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unfortunately, finals are coming up, so it may be a while before I can update again. That being said, I will try my best not to leave you hanging for long!! 
> 
> Comments always make my day when I've had a rough time at school, so give me a shout out with your thoughts on the chapter!:D


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ughghghg you guys, it's Law School Finals Week (like Shark week, only slighty less blood and twice as much competitiveness); I have two more, and I already feel burned out >__

 

Kono glances down at her phone one last time -- there are dinner plans up in the air with her newly bonded alpha, something classy at a nice place that she'd need a black dress for, but right now her hands have to be holding wax paper so she can trace a symbol carved into a severed hand. She texts a quick response that she can't wait for desert at home afterward, adding a wink, and shoves her phone in her back pocket before getting down to business. She has to eventually silence her phone, because the entire crew is group texting how relieved they are that Steve is going to be able to keep his badge.

Her knees are in the tall grass, soaking moisture from the damp, dark volcanic soil, and dark patches appear on her jeans.

In front of her, there's an array of human arms and legs arranged in some sort of design, sticking into the earth like a garden. A round circle of hands and forearms sticking straight up toward the sky, like a grotesque sort of fence framing a spiral of stones. In the center, though, a post is stuck into the ground... With something white and red spiraled around it, and a ram's skull on top.

"So are those spines? Is that what I'm looking at?" Says a fatigued voice behind her. It's Danny, and the omega looks bone tired, like he's had enough of this bullshit and he's only just gotten here.

"Hey, brah, congrats on the panel hearing! And yeah, they're spines," Kono answers grimly.

"Jesus," Danny mutters, carefully stepping over the ring of prostrate, stiffly reaching gray-blue hands. With one hand on his abdomen, Danny leans to get a good look at the spines spiraling around the post. "Who the fuck is this guy?"

"Obviously ritualistic," Jerry pipes in, walking closer with a tablet in his hands.

"Like a cult or just a crazy person?" Danny frowns and straightens up, placing a hand on his hip.

Jerry is about to answer him when he suddenly pauses and glances around in the late morning air. "Hey, where's Papa-bear?"

Kono huffs a wry laugh from the ground as she traces a symbol carved into the palms of one of the hands. "He's probably watching like a hawk from wherever he is, Jerr, don't worry."

Danny's skin flushes in a blush; "Worry? What are you -- like -- concerned that I'm walking around by myself? I can fuckin' walk, okay? Been doin' it for 32 years."

The beta shakes her head to herself; if Danny could just see how tired he looks -- like he's about to pass out -- he'd understand why everyone's worried about him. Even just looking at him, how small he is, and how his growing pup-belly makes up at least a quarter of his general mass... He's all pups now. And the hearing must've taken a lot out of him; the poor guy looks bone tired, and even _Kono_ feels uneasy watching him traipse around the crime scene. A killer this fucked up could have easily left a few dangerous surprises around the field.

How does Steve deal with this?

Kono keeps quiet, however, as she watches Jerry hold up his free hand up in apology. "You're Ohana, Danny, we're just all trying to look out for you and the mini-mcgarrets..."

Danny huffs out a long breath, placing a hand on his stomach. "Someone told you? Really?"

Kono winces. "Dude... HPD gossips like a bunch of church ladies."

Jerry purses his lips awkwardly and glances down at Danny's pup-belly. "Yeah man, everyone knows about the you-know-what's in your you-know-where."

Danny's eyes widen, "Jerry, I don't even want to know what that last bit was supposed to mean." He's glancing around, then, as if finally noticing that the entire crew IS stealing glances at him; at this, the omega turns bright red.

"You know, I never thought I'd get to meet an omega -- nonetheless a male one," Jerry mumbles in awe. "This is like meeting big foot on an alien spaceship in Area 51." 

The detective looks away awkwardly and clears his throat. "Okay, thank you; very uh... kind of you," Danny mutters. "That being said, I'm still a detective and I'm still higher on the totem pole than you so please don't let my business distract you from this case. Now what'd you find?"

Jerry leans over to show him something on the tablet, and Kono listens as she takes a few pictures of the carvings in some of the palms of the hands. "The Ram's head is associated with Satanists, or pagans -- who wouldn't condone any of what's going on here -- and the spiral is a very important symbol to a lot of religions. Particularly religions pre-dating Christianity; they use it to symbolize different meanings, depending if it's clockwise or counter clockwise," Jerry explains.

"Alright, I want you to give me a list of religions that would be using this type of set up at this time of year and cross reference that list with known social media groups, church licenses, and criminal records," Danny says. "Now where's Max?"

The coroner is behind him, scraping something off of one of the hands with a scalpel. "Right here, Detective Williams. I've found a weird waxy substance on some of the hands that the lab can analyze."

"Okay, good. Now, how easy is it to separate the spine like that from a body?" Danny frowns at him, sighing.

The awkward coroner looks up at him. "Excellent question, detective, I believe only someone with at least some medical knowledge," he says, placing whatever the substance is into an evidence bag for the lab. "The spinal cords are still in tact."

Danny chews on his lower lip, probably thinking how to best use this development for the investigation without wasting the time and money of the department. Kono tilts her head, curious, because it seems to be taking the detective longer than usual to formulate game plans today.

Like he can't keep his thoughts straight.

"You want me to check for convicts with medical licenses?" Kono offers, standing up and brushing dirt off her knees.

The omega nods, gracious. "Yeah, do that. And also veterinary and coronary licenses." He runs a hand back over his hair, staring out at the crew.

Kono starts to pick up her belongings -- a Moleskine notebook and a Pilot G2 pen, when Max suddenly comes out of the fucking blue with the wrong thing to ask a tired omega.

"Detective," Max says, approaching him with a smile. "May I ask how the babies are doing?"

"Huh?" Danny blinks in surprise, but max is already reaching out toward his stomach. She gasps, because he raises up his hand with his claws flicked out toward the hand that's trying to touch his stomach.

"Max," barks a loud voice -- an alpha voice, and everyone, including Kono, freezes, turning to look at him.

Danny looks like he's caught himself at the last second, and thankfully hasn't cut his friend's hand. Kono bites down on the inside of her cheek and backs a couple of feet away from the pair.

The Seal places a hand on Danny's back, rubbing it gently as he walks past toward the spiral, looking up at Kono's worried expression. He glances at Max sternly, and then back to her. "It's probably best to give him a bit of space while he's carrying."

Kono nods, lowering her eyes submissively as she starts to pull out her phone to text chin to tell him what she saw almost happen.

"Forgive me, I should have considered my actions more thoroughly," Max nods, smiling sheepishly at Steve; he looks completely oblivious that he almost got his hand sliced up, but Steve must have known what was about to happen.

"Instincts are a powerful thing," Steve mutters, glancing over his shoulder at Danny pointedly.

The omega sighs and walks off. 

**xxxxxxxxxx**

That night, at home, the phone rings, and Danny watches curiously as Steve immediately springs out onto the lanai with the phone, sliding the glass doors shut behind him. 

But he must have forgotten that the windows are open, because Danny can definitely still hear him. 

_"Uh, no sir. I haven't called them yet. The board said we had until the end of the week, and I -- well, I was hoping we could find some sort of loophole."_

Danny shakes his head. Steve's talking about THRESH.

_"Uh huh."_

_"No, I understand that tomorrow is Wednesday."_

_"I've been calling everyone I know, yes sir. I understand."_

_"Thank you, sir."_

_"Alright. Goodnight."_

The alpha lifts his head quickly to glance at him, and when he sees Danny watching him through the open window, the alpha sighs and holds his gaze. 

Danny exhales a long breath and pulls himself off the couch, deciding to take a hot shower to get his mind off of this bullshit.

**xxxxxxxxxxx**

When Danny walks into the office the next morning, there are at least three teddy bears, six gift baskets, and a dozen cards on his desk.

"What in the world?" He mumbles in surprise, picking up one of the teddy bears. There's a tag on its ear that Danny has to turn his head sideways to read.

"Congrats on your upcoming litter, Detective Williams," he reads slowly, then pulls a face. "Litter?"

He shoving the bear headfirst into one of the drawers on his filing cabinet.

"Why are you filing that bear?" Steve snaps, walking past with his coffee.

The blonde whips his head up, blushing. "Because someone used my name and the words 'upcoming litter' in the same sentence, Steven, that is why."

Steve stares at him, raising his brows. "So? Newsflash: people love babies, Danny. You're gonna get a lot of cards and crap from the nice, friendly people of Hawaii."

"But 'upcoming litter?'" He holds open his empty palms with a face of disgust; "that makes me sound like a house cat."

"Yeah well you hiss and scratch more than any cat I've met." Steve gives him a knowing look, taking a sip of his coffee and leaving the omega to sort through the cards, grumbling under his breath (but maybe secretly flattered to see how popular he is at the office).

One of the next few cards he reads, however, is from the governor.

It's a cute card with a silver pair of little baby footprints on a white backdrop, simple and to the point.

But under the word "congratulations" printed inside, the governor has written out that he has spoken with the board and he is aware that Danny will have to be submitted for testing at THRESH. Danny sighs, shoulders falling as he slumps into his chair, as he continues to read. He says that if there's anything he can do to help Danny stay with Five-0 instead, he is more than willing to discuss any available options. 

He grabs at his brow, slowly dropping the card onto his desk with a frown. 

"Now what's wrong?" Steve asks, walking past again, this time with a stack of missing person profiles to take to the lab for facial reconstruction comparison.

"Huh?" Danny looks up, and tries to fake a smile. "Nothing, babe, everything's fine." 

  
**xxxxxxxxx**

By Thursday, the entire remainder of the HPD department and headquarters is aware of Danny's "condition." People are holding doors for him, and he has to swat off at least two rookies that try to take whatever he's carrying through the bullpen out of his hands. 

There are a few people that are obviously not happy with him being out in the field with the crew, however; Danny and Steve get more than a few dirty looks.

Steve tries to continue giving his mate some space, but never lets him out of his sight, which the omega may or may not have figured out by now. He's currently watching Danny walk out toward the perimeter of the site that afternoon, and he decides to text Chin to head out there with the omega to keep an eye on him. 

Chin will do it, no questions asked. His lead beta is one of the only people he trusts to look out for his mate, because Chin's proven that he's not afraid to shoot to kill.

The alpha slides his phone up from his back pocket, and freezes when he hears a commotion back at the parking lot.

Turning around with a frown, Steve states with his alpha eyes toward the tech station and the cars and feels a growl automatically rumble up through his chest, startling the betas around him.

It's Thresh.

"Oh _fuck_ ," he mutters, sprinting off into Danny's direction.

**xxxxxxxxxx**

Danny is halfway to the tree line when he catches a scent of someone upwind of him.

 

"Mr. Williams," says a voice in the opposite direction. Danny whips around, seeing a moon faced woman in a white lab coat. There are two men in dark green scrubs beside her, all giving him a strangely intense stare. She smells like rubbing alcohol, and the way she's looking at him is making the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

His omega brain is telling him to get back to Steve.

_Now._

"Can I help you?" Danny mutters, slowly placing a hand on his gun.

The woman steps closer to him, and Danny thinks briefly that she might be one of the technicians, because she's wearing white rubber gloves.

But then she steps closer -- too close, and Danny steps back, curling his lip up over his teeth as he hisses in warning.

"Yes you can," she answers with a smiles.

The two men laugh, exposing their fangs; and fuck, they're not betas then. They're alphas.

They must be wearing masking deodorant so they could sneak up on him, oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck.

Danny takes another step back. "Lady, do me a favor and show me your field pass if you're a tech, or you need to get the hell out of here. This is an active criminal investigation!"

She keeps stepping closer, and, without saying a word, she holds up a lanyard with her ID on it.

It says THRESH in bold green letters.

Danny lets out a low whine.

"No..." He can't go with them, not yet, the board agreed, right? To let them sort this out on their own time?

The pups start to squirm nervously inside him as his heart starts to race.

The two alphas stalk forward, and one of them has a syringe.

"Danny!" His alpha's voice yells powerfully, and then he hears heavy footfalls.

It's his mate, thank god almighty, his strong, dominant, protective mate. Danny lets out a howl of distress but stands his ground, keeping his eyes wearily on the syringe.

"Get away from him!" Chin's voice yells, and he catches the lead beta's furious scent, along with Kono's as they sprint toward him.

Within seconds, Steve and Chin are standing in front of him, and Kono places a hand on his bicep, wrapping her other arm around his back.

For a second, no body moves.

"Mr. McGarrett, the board contacted us to keep us abreast of the situation and also to inform us that -- as we suspected -- you have been hiding an unregistered omega."

"We were given permission to call you later this week to set up a formal consultation with the registry's services," Steve seethes, "you have no right to take him from his job with no warning!"

"A nesting, alpha, isn't that sweet," she mutters. "And actually we do have a right to do this." She holds up a warrant. "We told the board about how you lied directly to the registry when we confronted you about your hidden omega."

Steve is silent, gritting his jaw as he crosses his arms.  
  
"That," the woman continues, "combined with the fact that Daniel here hasn't had any proper medical care under your unwatchful eye, McGarrett, had the panel doubting your competence in doing anything in Danny's best interest."

Steve snarls. "You're not taking him."

The woman stares at him, an unpleasant expression crossing her even less pleasant features. "We thought you might say that," she says, holding up an alpha muzzle. "We'll dart you if we have to -- all of you -- and have you court marshaled. Either way, he's coming with us today for four weeks of testing at the facility."

The team falls silent, glancing at each other.

"Steve," Danny whispers, "the case. You have to be here for the case, they can't solve this without you..."

"Danny stop it," Steve growls, but his voice breaks. "I'm not letting them take you."

Another beat of silence passes, when the woman raises a radio unit to her face. "Get the tranquilizer darts, Daddy Alpha doesn't want to do things the easy way."

<<how many darts>>

She glares at Steve. "Two for the alpha, and one each for two ambitious betas."

Danny places his face into his hands; "Guys, guys stop -- I can't... I can't let you do all of this and get hurt for me."

"Danny, no! You can't --" Kono begins desperately, pleading with him.

"It's okay, Kono. I can't ask my team to take darts for me. We knew this would happen -- Steve, babe, it's okay, I'll go."

"I'm not letting them take you," Steve snarls, whipping around to grab his shoulders.

Danny's eyes start to shine. "Steve," he whispers, "You're not gonna get anymore second chances if you end up attacking them. This way I'll know you're okay, and not in rehab. Because they're gonna take me anyway, babe, we knew this was coming, we knew it from day one..."

Steve whines, clenching his shoulders painfully, and glances back at thresh.

Danny reaches up to place gentle hands on the alpha's fingers that are digging painfully into his skin. "Steve, babe, let go," he says sternly, trying to sound convincing, because Jesus Christ he sure doesn't feel okay with this himself.

The alpha's face falls and he ducks his head to kiss the omega deeply on the lips, gently holding the back of his head and curling around him protectively. "I love you," he says quietly. "You know that."

Danny nods, "I know."

"And I'll get you out of there -- okay? I'll get you out." Steve kisses his forehead, reaching a hand down to palm the pups with a strong hand. "I won't let anything happen to them. They're ours."

The alpha stares into his eyes and Danny nods slowly. "I love you," he says softly. He looks down at his abdomen before he sighs and steps toward the woman.

"Let's go." He glares at the two alpha's, "Don't you fucking touch me."

He looks back at Steve who's almost shaking with anger and about to rip out his own hair and sighs.

This is the best way this could end today.

Because he knows that Steve would've killed someone this time, if he lost control.

As soon as they shut him in the back of the THRESH van, which is more like an ambulance, Danny's eyes start to water.

After a minute or two, a tear or two start to run down his cheeks and he wipes his face furiously with the back of his wrist. He doesn't want these people to see him cry.

**xxxxxxxxx**

They have him, within the first fucking hour, humiliated, in a pair of stirrups. A doctor is collecting samples of his slick as he stares up at the ceiling and tries not to be there.

  
Someone expresses at least an ounce of fluid from each side of his chest, violating him, and it fucking hurts, not physically, but because Steve was the last person to do that for him in a hot shower when the pressure got to be too much. He and the alpha didn't talk about it afterwards; it was like an unspoken agreement that Steve was doing what had to be done and that was it. Even though it had lead to mind blowing shower sex.

They do ultrasounds -- one internally, with a thick, rounded plastic rod that goes painfully far up inside him -- to check his cervix -- until he's panting and gritting his teeth. He snarls at them when one of the tech girls starts "accidentally" thrusting the rod up inside him repeatedly when the doctor leaves the room. The tech shoves the rod's tip right against Danny's O spot, laughing under her breath as his hips jolt and he almost orgasms on the table at her mercy.

He tries to bite the girl for that, swears at her so viciously that they sedate him and put a muzzle on him for all of the tests afterward.

But when they pull out a needle almost ten inches long and start toward the swell of his pups on his abdomen, he bucks off the table, snapping one of the leather straps with his claw. He shakes his head and hisses at the doctor through his muzzle when the doctor tries to explain why the test is necessary. Three huge betas come in and Danny is able to scratch one of their faces and kick one in the groin before the other two manhandle him back onto the table, strapping him down, and he howls out inhumanly in distress until someone puts a gas mask over his face.

He feels himself getting dizzy soon after, and he wakes up with what feels like a hangover in a room with a round mattress lined with pillows. There's a plate of typical hospital food with a plastic spork (they won't even give him a fork or a knife) but Danny's too stressed out to eat -- how could he? They won't give him any access to a phone to call his mate, he's away from his nest, he's six months along with the pups and surrounded by strangers, and there's a murder investigation he should be solving. 

Three techs come in and try to get him to eat, but Danny just can't. He can't eat for the first five days. When he starts to lose too much weight, they start tube feeding him, which, he figures out quickly is the worst thing that's been done to him so far.

Four giant betas hold him down so a nurse can shove a silicon tube down his throat and pour a thick, bitter vitamin calorie supplement straight down into his stomach until he's so full that it hurts and all he can do is lay, panting shallowly through the stomach cramps in the nest they've given him.

He starts eating after that.

A few of the tests happen every other day, some happen daily. They drag him out of his room at 6:00 am, half asleep, and take his weight, cheek swab, a small prick of his blood, and, by mid morning every other day, a slick sample. The doctor takes some sort of sick amusement in shoving his entire hand up Danny's ass to manually collect his slick.

His asshole is so stretched out that by the fourth or fifth time the doctor doesn't even have to try that hard to get Danny's hole to swallow up his lubed hand and the omega blushes shamefully, trying not to show his despair as the stranger's hand twists inside him, fingers stretching up to massage his sensitive gland and cervix until he's shaking and shivering and gushing slick but about to black out from the pain.

The doctor hums something about his impressive virility and collects a few glass vials of the fluid dripping out of him.

By the middle of the second week, Danny starts howling for Steve until he's hoarse, even though it's useless.

He knows that his mate is doing everything he can to get him out of here. Danny also unfortunately knows that there's no way Steve can pull enough strings to get him out before his month of testing is up, but he still keeps expecting Steve to walk in through the door.

The bond sickness sets in early with him, they say.

And one morning (at the end of the second week maybe, but the days are blurring together) he collapses in his cell.

The guards had just pulled him out of his nest to bring him to the lab, but his body is too depleted of Steve's alphadren pheromones -- which he needs to keep his system balanced with the the pups -- and now he's on the carpeted floor. He's staring weakly up at the surprised guards with a blank expression when one of them presses a button on a device just outside the door.

He hears an alarm as he drifts in and out of consciousness, and Danny's not positive but he's pretty sure a doctor squirts straight alphadren under his tongue with an eye dropper. It tastes bitter and wrong and he hears himself snarl before immediately vomiting.

He almost blacks out again, but Danny vomits three or four times until people start shouting and more alarms are blaring in the hallway.

They start feeling at his stomach and he snaps weakly at someone's hand, but then they grip him and he falls limply to the ground, letting out a low disoriented whine.

He thinks he's dying.

Maybe they do too, Danny thinks before he blacks out, shivering.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Danny! D:


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all. A small update. 
> 
> *TW* for miscarriage reference and/or related emotional distress.

He _hears an alarm as he drifts in and out of consciousness, and Danny's not positive but he's pretty sure a doctor squirts straight alphadren under his tongue with an eye dropper. It tastes bitter and wrong and he hears himself snarl before immediately vomiting._

_He almost blacks out again, but Danny vomits three or four times until people start shouting and more alarms are blaring in the hallway._

_They start feeling at his stomach and he snaps weakly at someone's hand, but then they grip him and he falls limply to the ground, letting out a low disoriented whine._

_He thinks he's dying._

_Maybe they do too, Danny thinks before he blacks out, shivering._

 

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 

Danny wakes to the feeling of strong arms around him with his face buried in his alpha's warm chest.

Feeling so safe and loved is such a salient contrast to the hell he's become accustomed to over the last couple of weeks, that the omega assumes he's dreaming; for the first few minutes, he doesn't open his eyes. He nuzzles his nose and mouth into the familiar, inviting musk of his mate's aftershave, feels the wiry fuzz of Steve's chest hair on his brow and sighs to the sound of his powerful Alpha's heart beat. 

But then there's the feeling of a tongue gently lapping at the scent gland on the juncture of his shoulder and his neck. "Mmmph," Danny frowns, trying to edge away from the ticklish sensation. 

"Stay still," Steve's warm, deep voice murmurs, and the omegas eyes flick open.

"Steven?" He says, looking up and seeing the underside of his mate's perfect chin. But they're still in Danny's THRESH cell.

"Hey Danno," he whispers, looking down at him and smiling, but it doesn't reach his eyes.

“You’re really here,” the blonde whispers slowly. 

Steve nods, giving that same sad smile. Danny pulls back, concerned at that smile, and moves to sit up and look around, but a firey pain in his stomach makes him yell out. 

Steve lurches up to grab his shoulders to settle the omega back down in the bed. "Babe, don't try to move," the seal says quickly. "Please." 

"Why the fuck does that hurt so much -- and why are you here? Did they come kidnap you?" Danny winces, holding his middle.

“They brought me in to try and get your system to stabilize, Danny. Just don’t move, you’re not supposed to --” 

The blonde yelps out gasping, and blinks at how it feels like he’s been cut the fuck open. “What the fuck did they do to me?!”

The alpha tries to grab his wrists, but Danny reaches under his shirt, wincing, and tries to feel toward the source of the pain. 

But when his fingertips find something long and prickly on one side of his stomach, Danny yanks his hand back like he’s been burned and turns to stare at Steve in horror. "Is that-- hold on, is that --" Danny shoves the blankets off of him, starting to panic, and wrenches up his shirt to look.

"Danny, calm down, there's something I have to tell you," Steve says quickly, reaching out to hold him, but Danny whips around to stare at him.

"This is an incision! Holy -- _holy_ fucking sh--" he scrambles off the bed, panicking as he desperately feels his stomach for the pups.

He can’t feel any movement.

“Danny, wait,” Steve whines, standing up with his hands fanned out to try to keep from spooking him further as he gets closer.

The omega looks up at him, eyes wild with panic. "Are they okay? Are they even-- are they still-- Steven? The pups!?" He starts breathing raggedly until his eyes are watering as he curls in on himself. "Are they even... _Are they still inside me?"_ he chokes, trying to back into a corner as he brings his shaking hands up to hold the sides of his head because he feels empty and this fucking nightmare is closing in on him.

Steve leaps up to grab his arms, steadying him, and pulls him to his chest. "Danny breathe! Just breathe. You still have two pups in there; they're fine, and they're healthy," he explains quickly, pulling back to lock eyes with the shaking omega. “We’ve still got two!”

 But Danny's face twists in pain and confusion and he looks down where his hands are wringing nervously. "Why are you saying it like that -- that we've still got two? What are getting at?"

 Steve bites his lower lip, feeing his own eyes water as he stares into Danny's eyes.

 And Danny gets it, suddenly.

Everything clicks.

Danny shuts his eyes, and something in his chest shatters into pieces.

"There were three of them, before... weren't there."

Steve doesn't answer him right away, but he sighs long and slow.

Danny falls against him, because Jesus Christ he's lost something he didn't even know he had. They had been so convinced there were only two, and the whole time, there was another little precious pup hiding in him.

"Doctors said you developed acute bond sickness," Steve says quietly. His eyes are bloodshot and glassy, likes he's been doing his own fair share of grieving. "The third baby was the smallest; half the weight of the other two, they said. When your system crashed, it just...” he trails off, looking down to hide his reddening face. “It wasn't strong enough."

Danny clenches his eyes shut, leaning into Steve, and he feels the blonde shaking silently with tears. The alpha doesn't hear a thing, though, until the omega gasps out a wavering, breath and a strangled sounding yelp of emotional pain.

The next few days pass by instantly and endlessly, blurring past and around Danny like a howling wind that he refuses to take part in.

It’s an emotionally draining battle to get his mate to shower or eat enough for two growing pups, but Steve doesn’t give up. He holds Danny through the nights when the omega wakes, howling. And when Danny wakes each morning and realizes that it’s all true, that everything wasn’t just a dream, and they really have lost a baby, the seal holds him tight again, and cries with him silently.

 

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**  

They try to tell Steve that "this happens" with some of the males -- that even when they follow the American Medical Association's guidelines for isolated testing of a male omega, some of the omegas are just "extra sensitive." When they try to tell him that the pup was never going to make it in the first place, being so underweight, Steve roars at the doctor and bares his fangs. None of his roaring changes the fact, they finally say, that without medical data from before the facility, Steve can't prove that the facility directly caused Danny to lose the third pup.

Steve is the one that wakes that night, roaring  in frustration.

When they make Steve leave after Danny is stable, they have to mace the alpha in the face and escort him out with five armed guards and a muzzle to get him away from his mate.

Kono and Cath, of all people, are there to pick him up. His former Alpha girlfriend looks back to run a soothing hand over his forehead, and he can smell the tears in her eyes. He asks gruffly why she’s back in town and she just smiles sadly at him; “I’ve been around here and there. The team just thought you might need a break from the case for a while, boss man.”

He stays in his nest for a week, inhaling the sheets that smell vaguely of his mate and pups, and bites anyone that tries to get him to move.

Most of the next few days are spent making phone calls on his cell to anyone and everyone in the government, but Steve still refuses to leave his home.

He’s mentally memorized the faces of the technicians at THRESH and he keeps dreaming about them, their faces suspended in the darkness of his most viciously primal dreams-- he tells himself it’s so Steve can have them fired from the facility, but he knows it’s because the Alpha in him is planning on hunting them down and ripping their throats out.

The crew is desperate to get their lead investigators back, but Cath is holding her own.

They visit him, annoyingly, almost every day and bring him dinner.

On the last week of Danny’s stay, he has a calendar page duct taped to the mirror and he crosses out the days with a sharpie as they pass, gruelingly slow. He doesn’t tell anyone this, but sometimes he sleeps in his truck outside of the facility, leaving before the morning shift arrives, because that’s as close as he can fucking get.

When he almost drowns, drunk, in the ocean that Friday, his ex girlfriend drags him out of the water and slaps him in the face before shoving him roughly with her alpha strength into one of the weathered adirondac chairs. She yells at him that his friends are there to clean the house, and that he better get his act together and be strong before his mate gets home the next day.

He watches in a self pitying daze as Kono comes up to run a soothing hand down Cath’s smooth, pale arm and lead her away by the hand to give the lead Alpha some space.

By the time Danny is lead back into the house the next night, with Chin and Cath supporting him, Steve is a haunted looking, feral mess that hasn’t been eating enough. His cheek bones cut out of his face at too-sharp angles, and his skin has a greyish pallor to it. Thank God, someone had the sense to call Joe in, because the older Alpha yanks him by the scruff of his neck up the stairs toward the nest when he starts snarling and snapping at his team members. He holds the alpha back when they gently lead Danny in, sedated from THRESH, and lay the pregnant omega in his nest. 

"Look how big he's getting," Cath says in surprise, eyes widening.

"Yeah, he's seven months along. And -- wait," she leans forward to put a hand on chin's shoulder. "He can’t be on his back,” Kono says softly.

The lead beta leans over the edge of the nest to gently adjust the limp, diminutive detective, while Kono tucks a pillow under Danny's belly for support. 

"I think he looks even worse off than McGarrett," Chin sighs as he places a hand on his hip, staring down at the healing incision on Danny's abdomen. 

"That's probably natural; Danny _is_ the mother, or whatever the hell politically correct word you call him, figures he'd take losing one of the pups the hardest," Joe says solemnly, and at that Steve gives a loud frustrated sound before shaking his head and apologizing. 

"Sorry, you -- everybody -- I just... I...Need...now," he trails off into a growl, ducking his head.  

Joe looks over at him in surprise that the alpha's actually able to put words together. "I hear ya, big guy," he says quietly, giving the back of his neck a gentle shake. "I know." He turns to the group. "I wouldn't expect much out of these two for a few days." 

"That's perfectly alright," Chin explains softly with a sigh as he turns to leave. "They can take all the time they need."

 

  **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**  

 

 Forgotten on the kitchen counter, a wrinkled letter lay addressed to Steven J. McGarrett from Thresh. It had been in Catherine's back pocket, but, in the commotion of having to dodge Steve's teeth before Joe could grab the alpha, Cath had haphazardly let the paper drift down to the tile counter top. 

Joe is the last one out, and, feeling slightly responsible for the two younger men (because he was there the night Steve found out what Danny was), the older alpha makes sure the fridge is stocked and the omega's antibiotic pills and ointments are out in an easy to find place. And when he decides that the middle of the kitchen counter is the best place to leave said medication, he spots the wrinkled letter marked with THRESH in dark green letters, and instantly has a terrible feeling about it. 

Worried that it might have something to do with Danny's medication regime or some urgent thing that a feral, bond sick alpha has no business handling, Joe delicately opens the letter with a steak knife from one of the drawers. 

By the end of the letter, Joe is so furious that he almost can't control himself. In a fit of rage, he grabs the tip of the knife and flings it at the opposite wall, embedding it into the wall beside the door to the lanai.

Because the letter from Thresh is saying that Danny has to go back in two weeks. 

This time, for two months. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, you guys. I know ;( I'm sad too.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKay, first of all, thank you SO MUCH to Bankroll1001 who is the First Mate to the ship that is the production of this story. I'm the belligerent Captain that sails straight into the storms for fun and mutters intelligibly into a rum bottle. So there's that. 
> 
> Second... all of y'all have to trust that there is a plot here, and it is unfolding with each chapter. I do, however, understand that it's hard when a story is being posted in installments to try to figure out why stuff is happening when you can't read ahead to answer your own questions.
> 
> Luckily for anyone who finds that this is not the McDanno story they expected, the only person *actually* being forced to read this story is my conservative dental student boyfriend who now knows a shameful amount about A/B/O, Slash, and McDanno and somehow still loves me. 
> 
>  
> 
> **I have to suggest that the people who don't like detailed moments of dark, haunting, horror material to please stop reading this story now!! :c**

  **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

 

Five AM finds Steven J. McGarrett tossing in bed next to his mate. He knows that the omega is awake, because when the ex navy seal asks Danny what he wants for breakfast after his morning run, Danny huffs a sigh in response.

As he runs down the barely lit sidewalk, Steve's alpha eyes are focusing predatorily on every single movement, and he feels tense despite the brutal pace, ready to attack and on a dangerous edge.

He's been living on this edge for four days, since Danny's return. He can only remember the last two days. The first thing he remembers is Joe pulling him out onto the beach and growling at him to focus through his feverish, feral haze.

"They want him to come back, son," he had said. It's the first coherent memory Steve can place in a week. "This letter says they want him back there in less than two weeks!"

It was also the angriest he can remember being in almost his entire life, and the thought practically stole his civilized brain away into a primal rage, and the next thing he remembers is that he was shoved down into the sand with Joe white's teeth on the back of his goddamn neck while he whined in submission.

Joe still has it, clearly.

Whatever 'it' is.

On the rest of his run, Steve catalogues every single option they have to fight THRESH.

It's a short list, because every single other option ends with the fact that, like Thresh explained to him, Steve has no proof that the third baby was healthy before Danny was sent in for testing.

He snarls out loud in frustration, spooking a black cat that had been slinking around until it darts up a tree, and the alpha in him wants to chase it. He wants to let go -- be himself, be furious, be frustrated, be wild, be fucking insane because that's seriously where this situation is steering him, but he has to be strong.

For Danny.

He can do this.

By 6:00 am, Steve finishes his run and has started his morning swim out to the reef and back. He sees three lobsters in a crook of rock and coral and debates diving down the grab one for dinner that night. But he's been having to practically force feed Danny for three days straight.

The thought, and the fact that he now has to both support his broken mate through this pregnancy and try to protect him from an adversary that has him out-numbered and legally out-gunned, makes him swim harder at a more punishing pace. He ignores the painful burn of his muscles and he swears he pulls something in his shoulder by the time he pads barefoot up the beach from the surf.   

Jerry, of all people, turns out to be the most annoyingly loyal beta and shows up to help Steve with laundry and random errands for the first couple of days after the alpha is up and about. For the first 48 hours, supposedly, Danny had slept in Steve's arms, silently digging claws into the alpha's arms every time that Joe -- ever dutiful supervisor and only person able to control Steve -- tried to get the omega out of the bed to dress the incision or to make him eat.

Steve doesn't really remember the whole reunion thing, but he has hickeys on every single one of his his scent glands like his wrists, his neck, and his groin. His head is also swimming from the omegadren like he's taken a double dose of ecstasy tabs. Danny's bond bite is swollen from all of the alphadren flooding through his veins, and Steve comes in to check it briefly again on his way toward the shower.

Before 7:00, Steve grabs a cotton swab and a small blue jar of ointment, starting to pull back the covers from Danny's swollen pup-belly.

The omega's eyes flick open and, for half a second, don't seem to recognize him as they bore dangerously into his own. Then the blue eyes soften and slowly blink at him as he pulls up the hem of his soft tee-shirt.

“What is that?” Danny whispers, hoarse from sleeping.

"Silver sulphadiazine. I don't think you'll have a scar if we keep putting this stuff on here," Steve murmurs, frowning as he concentrates. “We used to use it for shrapnel wounds in the Seals, babe; it’s safe.” Danny nods slowly, eyes flicking away to stare at a loose thread in his pillowcase.

"You gonna get out of bed today?" Steve asks softly, reaching up to brush blonde hair out of Danny's face. The omega locks eyes with him briefly before sighing and pulling the covers tighter around his body. "Guess not," Steve says sadly, and leans forward to kiss the blonde on the side of his brow. "I love you. And you're gonna eat today without me riding your ass about it, right?"

Danny is silent.

"Danno, babe, we talked about this," the alpha urges. He's doing his best to mask his frustration. "For the pups?"

After a beat passes, Steve stands up and pinches his brow. "Jesus, Daniel, I know it's hard, and that it's easier to just stay under the covers and do nothing, and believe me, I feel the urge to do the same. But you're going to eat. And after that you're going to get some sun, and I'm going to carry you out there if I have to so please don't let it come to that."

The omega is silent, and really it's the lack of Danny-esque one liners that's starting to scare him -- his partner has never been this silent in his life.

Steve is half-way out of the door to the nest when his mate's hoarse voice breaks the silence.

"I don't know how to feel."

The alpha pauses, fingertips reaching out to feel the edges of the titanium deadbolts he's just recently installed in the door frame.

Danny continues. "I can't decide whether to feel happy that we have two healthy babies, or sad that we would've had three -- that we lost one..." He trails off, and Steve can hear a waver in his voice. "And I feel so fucking guilty. Because I never even knew the third one was there."

For a moment, Steve says nothing, but he turns to lock eyes with his mate sadly. "No one's forcing you to choose what to feel, Danny. You feel what you feel."

By 8:00 am Steve has totally fucking abandoned breakfast and is in the backyard with a fucking axe, splitting wood so violently that Jerry won't even get remotely close to tell him that six packages just arrived from a white, unmarked shipping van.

"Do you even have a fireplace?!" the concerned beta yells, cupping his hands on either side of his mouth as Steve starts to actually chop down a fucking tree.

Not bothering to answer, because that would require Steve to actually think, Steve growls and slams his axe even harder into the tree in response. Thinking is what he's actively avoiding right now, because, so help him, if he has to see that broken look in his mate's eyes one more day, he's going to carry this axe right into that fucking circle of hell known as Thresh and split all of their heads open, and then maybe they'll feel an ounce of the pain he feels when he hears his mate trying to muffle the sounds he makes when he cries at night.

At 10:00 AM, after a very necessary second shower, Steve is a bit more composed and the backyard is a bit more treeless.

Jerry vacuums the house and chops up some fruit for a fruit salad, while the alpha goes through the packages that have just arrived. There are Korean labels all over the boxes, and Jerry eyes the packages wearily; since they've arrived in the house, the boxes have yielded three millipedes.

By 3:00 PM, Steve has installed six cameras, a video feed monitoring command center in the kitchen mail hutch, two deadbolts on each door to the outside, and a chain lock on every door. On the entrance to the nest, Steve installs a digital peephole camera, and a numerical keypad lock.

By the time the drilling, hammering, and the wiring is done, Danny has dragged himself to the closet to pull on some sweatpants.

"You gettin' up?" Steve blinks in surprise, and is looking over his shoulder from where he's kneeling by the door, screwdriver in hand. 

"One of the pups has the hiccups," Danny sighs with a grimace as he pauses and looks down at his belly. "I have to move around or it's not gonna stop."

"Maybe go rock in the hammock, then?" The alpha suggests, grunting as he tightens a screw in the key pad.

“Babe… Where did Joe get all of this?” Danny sighs, frowning at the chain lock and the new titanium deadbolt.

Steve glances back over his shoulder. And chuckles; “Where does Joe get _anything_ he gets?”

By 3:30 Steve comes down stairs to find Jerry boiling sixteen eggs in a tall stainless steel pot.

"He said he wanted deviled eggs," Jerry blurts, hands raising defensively. "Said his mom used to make 'em."

Steve feels a smile curl at his lips. "Good. Protein. Thanks Jerr," he says, before returning to the mess of boxes and packing peanuts on the dining room table.

By 4:15, Danny is outside, walking around the backyard, staring curiously at the tree stumps.

"Your lunch is done babe,"  Steve says, walking around the side of the house with his drill in his hand. He'd been testing the security system. Danny nods quietly before staring back at the stumps with raised brows.

Steve blushes.

"Yeah, I can explain, I just --"

"Obviously a bunch of rabid, salt water ocean beavers dragged themselves up our beach to wreak havoc on our backyard, Steven, because that is a lot more logical than you admitting to me that you were out here chopping down beautiful trees to make firewood for a fireplace we do not have." He leans around to stare at Steve pointedly and the alpha grins.

He's missed Danny's sarcasm over the past month and a half like nothing else.

"Ocean beavers," Steve mutters under his breath as the omega walks closer, and Steve half expects that the guy is gonna smack him, especially if he's realized that Steve has chopped down one of the hammock trees.

"I have a date with some eggs of the devil variety," Danny says quietly instead as he glances up at the alpha on his way past, and Steve just smiles, because his pregnant mate is wise cracking and he's eating, and these are two very good developments.

By 5:00 pm, Steve quietly walks up to Danny when he's settling down on the sofa to read over the case file updates, and pulls his bicep outstretched towards him.

"Hey -- _what_ the -- "

Before Danny can protest, Steve jabs his bicep, closer up near the shoulder, with the large gauge needle and pushes the plunger.

"OW!" Danny yells, grabbing the spot, "The fuck did you just do, you psycho?"

"GPS tracking device," Steve explains, walking out of the room.

“What did we say about injecting me with things without informed consent, Steven!?” Danny snaps.

At 7:30 PM, Steve is sitting out on the beach with a Longboard in one hand, watching the sunset. He smells the omega's sweet scent before he sees him. "Is Jerry still here?"

"Ah, no," Danny mumbles quietly, ambling gingerly through the sand before coming to stand in front of Steve. With a hand rubbing the small of his back, Danny grimaces. "I think he left an hour ago after he did the dishes..."

Steve takes a sip of his beer. "God bless that large hairy man."

Danny huffs a soft laugh, leaning over slightly to paw at Steve's knees until the alpha is spreading them wide enough for the detective to sit in the sand between his thighs.

Steve half buries his bottle in the sand and reaches up to help the pup-heavy omega ease into the sand and tugs him closer. "There we go," Steve mumbles with a grin into Danny's neck as he snuggles up close behind the small detective's back; in a moment, he has his huge arms wrapped around him and he's peppering his face and neck with small kisses.

He feels the omega relax and lean back against him, and the alpha in him is tentatively feeling proud again, that his mate feels safe again in his arms. With his chin on Danny's shoulder, he watches as the omega rubs his palms across his rounded abdomen.

"They kicking?" Steve whispers, and Danny nods against him.

"They're particularly enthusiastic about it tonight, too," he winces, widening his eyes. Steve smiles in the orange glow of the sunset.

Steve hums in approval, looking out at the waves. "Maybe they like the sound of the ocean."

"Maybe they hate it; probably find it obnoxious, in fact. They must be smart," Danny says slyly, giving him the side eye.

"Says the man that was blithering on about ocean beavers, earlier," Steve mutters, and there -- there it is.

Danny actually smiles.

By 8:00 pm Steven J McGarrett is happy, or at least somewhere on the way there. 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Danny wakes when his pups start shoving around in his abdomen at 5:48 AM. Deluding himself that he can sleep through it, Danny clenches his eyes shut again.

Kick.

Roll.

Punch.

Punch.

Somersault.

"Christ on a cracker, please go to sleep little babies," he pleads. Eventually, after an elbow or heel tries to burst through his fucking skin, he sighs.

The alpha beside him stretches with a throaty growl like a lion and languidly rolls over to rub his stomach.

"Good morning," he mumbles, kissing the skin, and Danny paws at his face in annoyance.

"No, you putz -- it's the unholiest hour imaginable and therefore it is in fact a bad morning," Danny snaps, but Steve is already flicking on a light.

Danny huffs resignedly flicking his eyes over to watch his mate stand slowly and stretch, then drop to the floor to do push ups.

"I used to be able to do those," Danny slurs into his pillow, hand on his gravid middle. "Maybe I could roll myself over there and flop down on the floor and give it a go, if you want."

Steve looks up, face hinting at a smile. "I don't -- ah -- want you doing these --ugh -- babe."

Danny smirks.

It's nice, joking around. It feels like before.

But Danny goes quiet suddenly, turning to stare at the ceiling as he brings up his other hand to cup the roundness of his stomach; he thumbs the incision, frowning.

Steve continues on to fifty, but he stops at eighty-three instead of one hundred. "Hey," he pants, "Stop winding yourself up, Danny, you're not going back. I'm going downtown today to meet with a lawyer, the director of the Pacific Medical Association, the DA, and the Ethics Committee of Hawaii.”

Danny's lips purse into a weak attempt at smiling in response as Steve resumes his push-ups.

"Yeah," he mutters, before clearing his throat. "Okay. Well, how's the case going?" He pauses. "I was thinking about going into the office today..."

Steve finishes his push-ups, sits back on his knees and gives him aneurism face.

Danny's stomach gives a sudden lurch and he's pretty sure it's not one of their pups.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"It says here that Danny was a particularly sensitive subject," the director of the Pacific Medical Association reads, looking up from the file in front of him.

They’re in the capitol building downtown, and Steve has three, possibly four meetings today between different medical officials with his lawyer present. This is the first meeting of the morning, and the director has thin wire framed, rectangular glasses around his skeptical brown eyes and what appears to be premature grey hair.

“I see that he had to take part in research, various tests and such, but nothing too extreme for a pregnant male omega. They kept him well rested and well fed, and the research procedures are, as you know, extremely vital to --”

"My mate was practically tortured," Steve interrupts.  
  
His new lawyer, Veronica, puts a hand on his shoulder and he turns to her sharply to find that she's giving him a look.  
  
The director of the PMA looks sympathetic but unperturbed. "You have to be able to control your anger Commander or I'll have to have security sit in on this meeting at another rescheduled date."  
  
"That won't be necessary," his lawyer snaps quickly. Steve nods at her; she has a rather masculine face -- all angles and a strong jaw, but she has soft, pretty brown eyes. She looks tough, and from her track record with subgender rights, she is. She seems uncomfortable, today though, after sizing up the director, and Steve can see why -- it’s not looking good.  
  
"I understand that the tests are not particularly pleasant, but they are no more abnormal than what a pregnant woman ordinarily goes through, save for the research and development aspects of Daniel's stay."  
  
"Violating him? Is that what you're referring to? Go ahead and call it what it was."  
  
The man looks at a loss for words. "Pregnancy involves an inherently invasive and --"  he pauses.  
  
"Humiliating?" Steve mutters, filling in the blank.  
  
"Uncomfortable slew of medical treatments and tests. For example, the amniocentesis test does involve a ten inch needle -- and Daniel was muzzled, but _only_ because he tried to bite multiple staff members, Commander, let's not forget that Daniel possesses fangs that are nearly an inch long!"  
  
Steve crosses his arms. The man has a point, unfortunately, but it isn't going to stop him from making sure either the whole staff at THRESH loses their jobs or the place gets shut down.  
  
"Not one of the procedures performed by the facility was against the standards and customs of the medical profession. I'm sorry, Mr. McGarrett, I don't see a cause of action against the facility for anything here."  
  
"The fuck kind of standard or custom keeps a pregnant omega away from his mate long enough to make his adrenal system crash?!" Steve snarls, ignoring the look of warning from his lawyer.  
  
The director leans back in his chair again, glancing down at the file with a sigh. "Two weeks. Barely two full weeks apart at a time, Mr. McGarrett, that hardly qualifies as torture," he begins shaking his head. "The standard of care for an omega allows for periods of separation -- to aid the research and development of better understanding of Danny's subgender -- for up to a month."  
  
"The stress caused him to lose one of our pups -- it's right there in the fucking file, I can see the red ink from here!" He seethes through clenched teeth, gesturing at the handwritten medical history in the man's hands.  
  
The man hesitates, regarding him silently like he's appraising him before looking down and sighing slowly. "I do see that one of the pups was lost; however, and I know that they've told you this, the data from the tests initially performed revealed that the pup was underweight. It's common with multiples for one of the pups to develop at a stunted growth rate, and you would have known that, had you submitted Daniel for proper care earlier!"  
  
Steve feels his face flush red with anger. It sounds suspiciously like this man is blaming Steve for what happened, and the alpha glares hard at the man, eyes like knives. "Are you going to sit there and tell me that we're just supposed to let that slide?"    
  
"Look," he begins, pushing back his tall leather chair to peruse through an old filing cabinet drawer in the desk. "You can file an official complaint, and we'll look into it, and perform an internal investigation, but the bottom line is _this._ .."  
  
They stand up from their chairs and Steve stares him down, waiting to hear what he knows the man is about to say, because it's the same fucking thing he was told at the facility.

  
"The standard of care is _objective_ . Meaning, legally, the facility only has to treat Danny as well as any other reasonable medical professional would treat any pregnant male omega. If it were s _ubjective_ , it’d be tailored to each individual patient, but it’s not practical to set industry standards that way, because it has to be something we can regulate. Now it turns out that Danny isn't average. It turns out that, from what I'm seeing in this chart, he needs you more than the average pregnant omega."  
  
Steve bites down on the inside of his cheek. "My partner is as strong as they come. You don't know a _damn_ thing about him."  
  
"It just means that his system is especially sensitive. More so than an average pregnant omega." The man shrugs gently, "This could have been caused by something as simple as a long period of separation early on in the pregnancy."  
  
Steve freezes, and he swears that time slows down -- just for half of a second -- but it stretches into a jarring moment of toxic clarity.  
  
He did leave Danny.  
  
When he was in rehab.  
  
For nearly three months, Steve was dead to the world, unreachable and isolated away from his mate that he'd had no idea was even pregnant, because he’d knotted Danny when he wasn’t in heat. The chances of the alpha having put pups in him were so slim that Steve hadn’t thought twice about the repercussions of disappearing for treatment.  
  
The man knows that he's finally said something that’s struck a chord with Steve. His eyes cast downward suddenly as he holds out the paperwork for filing an inquiry with Pacific Medical internal affairs. “This is all I can do about the situation within the confines of the state regulations, McGarrett.”

  
Veronica takes the paper quietly, and it's like she knows him well enough already to know he's either about to burst into a fit of rage or storm out because she starts to guide him out the door with her hand, sternly, to an office on another floor of the capitol building for their next meeting.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

When Danny walks into the office later that morning, he knows Steven is having a rough day, because the alpha isn’t responding to a single one of his texts.

He doesn’t press the issue, because he knows that he’ll hear about it at home.

Danny wishes briefly that he could set aside an actual cold beer for that conversation, instead of a root beer, because he doesn’t have a good feeling about the meetings that Steve has set up.

He clears his throat, looking around, and everyone in the office looks just as unnerved as he does, for different reasons of course. Jerry, who’s leaning over the tech table, looks up at him and does a double take.

“Danny!” he sputters, standing up straight and staring, “You’re... you’re back? Are you --”

Danny fidgets uncomfortably and waves him off with a hand; “I just... figured it was time, ya know? But Jerry...” He locks eyes with the beta, silently nodding, “Thank you. Thanks for, uh... everything you did for us.”

The large man smiles genuinely at him, “Happy to help, Dan my man.” But then, something catches his eyes across the room and the beta’s smile falters.

Danny frowns, looking around. “What?”

Jerry sighs. “The new suspect guy they brought in about an hour ago -- the lab found DNA under one of the hands fingernails, matched it to someone in the system.”

“Woah woah, wait,” Danny leans on the tech table and the damn thing has the audacity to creak under his weight and jesus maybe he has gained that much weight. “We have a suspect? Why wasn’t I told about this -- or Steve? Jerry, he’d want to be here.”

The omega storms over to the one sided mirror to view the interrogation.

Cath is standing in the room with her hands on her hips, and Danny can almost imagine the smell of the alpha dominance pheromones that must be filling the room, surrounding the figure in the chair. He’s got an itch under his skin to walk in there and get a good look at the guy, because the suspect is a lot older than anyone typically brought in for questioning.

The guy has been through prison, judging from his tattoos and the tough bastard expression about him in general. His  eyes though -- there’s something especially cold about them, and they’re light colored but still look sharp, even at his age. When the man's piercing eyes flick over to the one way mirror, as if he can see the omega standing there, Danny feels a chill go down his spine.

Cath steps out of the room after a moment and blinks in surprise at him. “Hey -- sorry,  did you want to… step in?” she gestures awkwardly back at the room where the old man is still in his seat.

Danny’s head is reeling just from the scent of Catherine's overbearing alpha presence (an unfamiliar one at that) and he puts a hand on his stomach protectively, shaking his head. “Pregnant -- I can't. I love you and all, Cath, but you kind of smell like a threat right now.”

He rubs his neck as the urge to submit sweeps over him, and _good God_ his hormones are still so screwed up. Thankfully he’s wearing extra scent blocking deodorant; he can only imagine what kind of pastry he would smell like to her otherwise.  

Even with the deodorant, she must still be able to get at least a diluted whiff of his submissive, carrying omega scent, because Danny swears he can see Cath’s fangs popping and her mouth _watering_.

“Woah, woah, hey,” he mutters, taking a step back, and she gives him an apologetic look as she suddenly darts toward the locker room.

“Well, you did a number on _her_ ,” Kono laughs quietly, walking up to rub one of his shoulders.

“Couldn’t tell if she wanted to kiss me or bite me,” Danny mutters, leaning toward the one way mirror with a sigh to watch the guy.

“Let’s not find out,” Kono mumbles awkwardly, putting her hands in her pockets.

"God, this guy looks like a shady creep," Danny mutters before he turns to her, eyes hurt. “And why didn’t anyone tell Steve or me about this lead in the investigation?”

“We wanted to give you guys time, brah,” she replies quietly with a shrug. He feels his face heat up; he hates being coddled in general, especially by anyone but his mate.

“I appreciate the concern; really, I do, and Cath is doing great. But Steve is still leading this investigation,” Danny snaps, straightening up. Chin is next to Kono suddenly, looking between them, concerned. Jerry is trying to make himself look small back over by the tech table, and it isn’t working.

“Danny, no one’s trying to step on Steve’s feet -- especially me,” Chin sighs, furrowing his brows. “It’s just that we know he’s got a lot on his mind right now. Is he coming in this morning?” Chin raises his brows, giving Danny this patient, kind hearted expression and fuck, Chin already knows the answer doesn’t he.

“No, well -- he’s...” Danny trails off, nobody but Joe knows Danny is supposed to be going back to THRESH in a week (which is why Danny needs to be working to distract himself from the nightmares he’s been having from the facility) so nobody knows that his mate is having to meet with three different officiates today to protest on his behalf. He tries to tell himself it’s okay, but Steve would be here in the office if it weren’t for Danny.

And this pregnancy.

Fuck.

“Okay, fine, you’re right. He’s not coming in,” Danny says, shoulders falling, and he pinches his brow. Everything just feels off without his partner barking orders at everyone. He looks up and the team is staring at him in concern and dammit if Jerry doesn’t come to his rescue _again._

“Guys,” Jerry says loudly, directing their attention to the tech screen. “I just found that interview we were looking for.”

There are some murmurs around the team, and chin turns to him. “The guy hasn’t been saying much of anything, and he’s been pretty much under the radar since he got out of prison about 10 years ago on good behavior.”

“But his DNA was under one of the fingernails on the hand,” Danny confirms, and Chin nods, handing him an old paper copy of some ancient looking police records. “The guy was twenty-eight in 1959? This guy’s got to be at least…”

“Eighty-seven years old,” Cath says, appearing from wherever the alpha had fled to to get away from Danny’s pheromones, but she now smells suspiciously like Vicks Vapor rub. “Sorry -- I’m good, now.”

Danny frowns, about to apologize that she had to go through the trouble of smearing that stuff on her nose and neck to try and mask her own scent _and_ Danny’s pheromones, but the video clip starts to play. It’s grainy looking, and black and white.

An old man is sitting at a desk under a single light, obviously under interrogation, and there’s a cloud of cigarette smoke waving around him like fog. His eyes, through the haze of the smoke, are unnerving and piercing -- and though the film is black and white, Danny can tell the guy’s eyes are ice blue, probably a cold grey, and it’s pretty fucking unsettling.

_“ **So, Mr. Hekelea’a, tell us why you’re confessing, again, please, for the record.”** _

**_The guy just starts to laugh; like metal scraping together all high pitched and lyrical, it’s an awful sound._ **

Everyone in the team cringes.

**_“Richard. Will you tell us for the record why you’re confessing? What’s so funny?”_ **

**_“What’s so funny, guys, is that this one -- well, this one’s a doozy.”_ **

**_“A doozy?”_ **

**_He looks expectantly at the officers that are out of the view of the camera and snubs out the butt of his cigarette, lighting another. “Oh yes. Yes it is, officers.”_ **

**_“Alright, Richard. Well, then tell us about it.”_ **

**_“Well I’m a butcher, okay?”_ **

**“ _Yes, we’re aware. You win the barbecue championship at the Church cook-off every damn, summer, too. But you haven’t been paying your taxes on your butcher shop.”_**

**_The man just starts laughing again, “Oh is that all?”_ **

Danny shifts uncomfortably, putting a hand over his stomach uneasily. He doesn’t like where this is going at all.

**_“Is there something else, Richard, that you’re not telling us? Something you’d like to get_ _off your chest, you said? Have you been using your shop to launder money for anyone?_ _is that why the books don’t match up?”_**

**_“So ya think somethin’ fishy is goin’ on with the books?”_ **

**_“Quit playin’ around, Richard, we know you’re up to somethin! Now we know you’re a good guy -- just get it off your chest.”_ **

**_The man pauses, suddenly, and ducks his head before he starts laughing again._ **

**_Then the guy looks straight up into the camera and smiles -- smiles like a fucking shark_ _or something, and it’s more of a toothy grimace._**

“Hang on, hang on,” Danny waves a hand up. Jerry hits the pause button and looks back at him in confusion. “Look at his teeth! Are his teeth... are they filed into points?”

 _“Ugh_ , God, are you serious?” Kono leans in close, mouths a swear under her breath.

His teeth are _definitely_ filed into points.

Chin looks over to Cath wearily, “You didn’t say his teeth were filed down.”

The alpha crosses her arms, “Well no. They're not. But, like I said, he’s eighty seven... He’s probably wearing dentures.”

“Exposing the teeth to open air while filing away enamel leaves the teeth prone to decay,” Max chirps quietly out of nowhere and Danny is surprised to see him hanging at the back of the group.

“The fuck did this guy do?!” Danny snaps quietly turning back to the screen, “He looks like a whack job -- what’s his chart even say? Murder? Kidnap, rape, battery, what?”

“It just says ‘ _unconscionable crimes against society,’_ ” Jerry snorts looking up with raised brows. “So basically he did something so heinous and took advantage of people to the point that they apparently didn't want write down what he did so no one would find out. Police work in a small town in the fifties for you. He’d been in jail for a life sentence, but got released for good behavior.”

“Probably because the island’s prison system was jammed packed for a decade,” Chin sighs. “They didn’t start expanding it until five years ago.”

One of Danny’s babies gives an annoyed shove, and Danny rubs the spot discreetly, determined to focus on his job for the first time in over a month.

“They didn’t want to just transfer him to the mainland?” Kono frowns. "Shove him off on California's prisons?" 

Jerry huffs a wry laugh. “Not without an actual crime written in his file. Vague ‘unconscionability’ probably doesn’t really translate well over state lines without a description...”

“So why _wasn’t_ there a description of the crime?” Danny mutters, staring at the guy’s eyes. “What the hell did this guy _do_ that was so bad that they couldn’t friggin’ describe it?”

“Something they didn't want anyone in the town to catch wind of, apparently,” Jerry mutters, pressing play again. "Let's find out." 

 

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

 

By the time Danny has set his holster down at home on the kitchen table, he looks like he's about ready to vomit from having to hear the rest of the interrogation.  
  
Steve is two beers deep in a hard kitchen chair, bent over a legal pad of paper as he finishes up what sounds like a long conversation with Joe White.  
  
"Babe," Danny says cautiously after the alpha swipes his thumb on the end call button.  
  
Steve looks up, face long and eyes tired, but he's smiling -- or trying to.  
  
"Hey buddy," he sighs, quickly gathering up the list and his phone and tucking them away behind him before he opens his arms to hug him.  
  
When they embrace, Steve pauses, inhaling in his neck . "You're dehydrated, exhausted, and haven't eaten in 8 hours." The alpha shakes his head, giving him a stern stare and opens the fridge door to grab a bottle of juice to toss him.  
“Here, get your blood sugar up, and I’ll fix you some of that lasagna Jerry made.”

"We have a suspect," Danny says quietly, grabbing the bottle.

The alpha's muscles flinch almost imperceptibly; "Nobody told me that..." He rounds on the omega. "Who?"  
  
Danny purses his lips. "It's uh... kind of a long story."  
  
"Give me the Cliff's Notes," Steve crosses his arms, brooding.  
  
Danny huffs a wry laugh; “Lab found something under the fingernails of one of the hands at one second site -- DNA matched up with someone in the system. An old guy; Richard something or other, and they brought him in for questioning." Danny pauses, sitting across from Steve; "Guy was incarcerated for an 'unconscionable act' that no one would actually write down in his file."  
  
Steve raises a brow. "An Unconscionable act."  
  
Danny takes a long slow breath. "This Richard guy was a butcher. And he had a deal with someone in the morgue that he was paying off on the cheap side to take the bodies of people in the church that were supposed to be cremated. But he wasn't uh... He wasn't cremating the bodies."  
  
Steve leans back in his chair. "Don't tell me -- he was butchering up the bodies."  
  
“Worse.” Danny leans forward, "Church Barbecue champion six years in a row."  
  
Steve runs his hands up over his head. "So he was serving the church crowd their recently deceased members. God I hate being right."  
  
The omega shakes his head, "He even had his teeth filed down to points."  
  
"So the island wouldn't let anyone write down the crime... because they didn't want the townsfolk to find out?"  
  
Shrugging with a sigh, Danny purses his lips. "Guess not. Think about it though -- you got the tourism industry just taking off, the islands hadn't been a state that long... you wouldn't want to scare everybody away from visiting."  
  
"So now that we’re both completely turned off from Barbecue for the next ten years, “ Steve mutters, raising his brows, “We've got to figure out if this guy’s too old to have done all this."  
  
Danny raises a hand up, "He could've had help."  
  
"Like an apprentice?" Steve stands up from the chair to head toward the fridge.  
  
Danny frowns. "Do butchers normally have apprentices?"  
  
"Maybe the psychopathic people-cutting-up kind do," the alpha mutters.

“Maybe.” Danny grimaces and looks down to find that the thought has made him bring his hands in to rest over his bump. He finds himself doing that a lot lately, and pauses to rub his hands gently over the swell as he tries to stop thinking about ill fated Church cook-offs. A pup nudges curiously at his palm.

Steve glances down at Danny’s hands in concer **n** before he starts to put together a plate of leftover lasagna and roasted asparagus. "My day wasn't much better, but uh," he pauses turning over his shoulder, "Nobody at the capitol building had filed their teeth into points. So yeah.”

Danny’s fatigued blue eyes flick up to meet his, imploring him for an explanation.

Gritting his jaw, Steve looks away and leans forward on the countertop, watching the microwave instead. Evasively. “Danny, everyone asked me the same questions, and told me the same answers, and it’s not looking good,” he begins. “I went to every single person that I could fucking think of! We have no chance without _proof._ It was like it was rehearsed or something, everyone just kept feeding me the same lines, over and over.”

Danny swallows thickly. “Rehearsed?”

“I just felt like I was watching people read things off a prompt in every office I sat in today. The director of PMA was sympathetic but… something was off, he was saying the same things the facility told me, and almost --I  don’t know, Danny -- brushing things off right in front of me.”

“Well fucking brush them back _on_ Steve, I’m not going _back_ to that place!”

“I tried, damn it!”  Steve roars, fangs popping, “Don’t you get it? It’s like THRESH has full immunity and means or something, I don’t know what’s going on!”

“That’s impossible,” Danny snaps. “We have to be able to sue someone for what happened, this is the _United States,_ not North fucking Korea!”

“You wanna know what they told me? Fine. We have no proof,” He leans in close to Danny’s face and Danny almost hisses at him on reflex.

“But Max’s friend -- Dr. Alexei!” Danny throws out his hands. “We can get him to testify as proof that I would have carried all three to term without THRESH intervening.”

Steve’s green eyes are hardened, “He would lose his license and _probably_ end up in jail for failing to turn in an unregistered omega, especially one that he definitively knew was pregnant. We have _no_ proof, Danny, and no cause of action to sue.

THRESH followed the industry standard set by the Pacific Medical Association. I went all the way to the top today, making formal allegations, Danny, and in the end they told me the loss was _my_ fault -- because I didn't force you to turn yourself in to get _proper_ medical care, and also because I was gone for the first three months… said it screwed something up inside you!” Steve roars bitterly and he suddenly slams the glass into the sink, shattering it.

The omega flinches, taking a step back wearily as his broken mate turns to lean over the sink and take a deep wavering breath. The alpha’s shoulders are hunched up like raised hackles before he leans his head back to stare pleadingly at the ceiling. “Maybe it is my fault.”

A huge, heavy silence falls over them for a moment, and the words hang in the air around them.

Steve takes a wavering breath. “And I can’t even lead my own team through an investigation, and now they’re pulling leads _without_ me, clearly. I don’t even feel like I’m an alpha anymore,” he whispers, holding his head in his hands as he suddenly eyes one of the new titanium dead bolts. “I tried to make this place as safe as possible, because I thought that would help, but... I don’t know anymore, how to keep you safe because _nobody_ is playing fair! No one can see that it’s wrong if regulations are being set by a group that’s writing them based only on data given by the group being regulated!”

Silently, Danny crosses the kitchen, reaching out to touch his huge roaring mate’s broad shoulders -- and for fuck’s sake there’s so much distress filling the room that his claws have popped.

“You know what, babe? I think between THRESH and this case, we’ve just had _enough_ for today. I really do, I think our brains are like -- like _sponges,_ soaking up all of this bullshit left and right, and we just need to detox for a minute, babe. Come to bed,” Danny sighs. “I honestly can’t eat anyway -- keep seeing that guy’s fuckin’ teeth every time I shut my eyes.”

Nodding, Steve shoves the plate into the fridge and leans over into to fish out a chilled protein shake instead. He doesn't say a word as he holds it out for his mate, and Danny has the grace not to argue as they turn off the kitchen light and trudge up the stairs.

Steve’s back is pressed to Danny’s chest for once as they lay in bed, and the omega holds the Seal with strong arms and breathes gently into his neck, inhaling his alpha scent.

The pheromone signatures are still sour with the scent of distress after almost half an hour. Danny sighs against Steve’s warm skin, pressing a gentle kiss to the nape of his neck. “Babe, we’re Five-0... We get the bad guys.That’s what we _do_ , and that’s what we’re gonna do, right? We always get ‘em in the end… No matter how high up the ladder they are.”

“Yeah,” Steve says gruffly, but the alpha doesn't sound convinced.

When Danny tentatively starts to lap at his scent markers in the alpha glands on Steve’s neck, the Alpha shifts slightly at the sensation.

The omegadren in Danny’s saliva starts to flood through his system like a drug, cooling the burning edges of his thoughts into a relaxing haze. Finally -- thank fucking god -- Steve can think clearly for the first time all day since being told, by some prick with premature grey hair and a three thousand dollar suit, that he basically hadn’t handled Danny’s pregnancy like a responsible _prudent_ Alpha.

Given that they’re having to hunt down a bunch of serial killers, he thinks that he’s managed this as well as anyone could have under the circumstances. But Danny’s soft, warm tongue is sweeping over and over the gland soothingly, and Steve shuts his eyes, leaning his head to give Danny better access to his neck.

“Thank you,” he murmurs, nuzzling into the creamy soft skin of Danny’s inner bicep, inhaling the sweet omega and pups scent that reminds him of sun warmed honey.

“I’ve got you,” Danny murmurs, hugging him closer and nuzzling into the back of his neck and short black hair.

After a beat of silence, Steve turns to glance over his shoulder; Danny’s omega eyes are reflecting the moonlight over his shoulder with a faint glow and the alpha can tell he’s looking at him expectantly.

“Would you go on the run, Danny? Would you trust me -- if we have to?”

The omega doesn't answer for a long time, but eventually exhales slowly, shutting his eyes with resignation; “If the time comes, then yeah _. I would.”_

“If the time comes,” Steven repeats softly into the dark. Something settles in his gut at that -- a slight relief that he isn't completely backed into a corner yet -- but in his rational mind, Steve knows that he can't expose Danny to that amount of stress this far gone with the pregnancy. Even now, the alpha feels their pups kicking and rolling in his mate’s womb against his back, and, God, he can even tell the difference now between their precious knees, feet, and hands. “Hopefully it won't.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> School has been pretty rough -- law school finals are insane. Imagine writing essay after essay on the spot for four hours at once every other day or so for two weeks. Luckily those are over, but I'm in year round classes. I'm in summer session now, with an even heavier workload;( 
> 
> Needless to say, it's hard to find the time to write, so give me a shout out if you like the story and want to see more. Comments keep me going :D


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has not yet been looked over in full by my trusty editor/proof reader/sense-maker-of-things, so *edits are pending.* Excuse any typos. 
> 
> But I'm appalled at how long I've kept y'all waiting - ____ - So I just thought I'd put this draft up early tonight.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

Joe White calls him around midnight that night, and, thinking it's work, Steve lurches his shoulders up from the mattress. He paws blindly for the phone on the nightstand, and manages to knock three books off the nightstand before he grabs his iPhone. 

Squinting at the glowing screen, he hears Danny grumbling in protest behind him, trying to pull him back up into bed, but he twists to put a soothing hand on his mate's warm chest.  

"Babe, it's _Joe,"_ he says curiously, sliding his thumb over the screen to answer. "Joe?"

"Steve, hey, sorry about this -- I know Danny's gonna spit fire at me for callin' this late." 

"Danny? Forget Danny, I'm gonna drop a flash grenade in your stall next time you use the bathroom at Five-0 if you don't have a good reason for waking me up," Steve huffs a laugh into the phone, wincing when a clawed set of fingernails digs into his shoulder and fanged teeth start nipping a line up his arm in annoyance.

Joe laughs loudly for a moment before explaining, and he sounds hopeful and -- more importantly -- confident. "McGarrett, your mate's not gonna go back to THRESH if I can help it. I've got a _plan_." 

 

xxxxxxxxx

  
Nellie Darnell approaches what she knows to be the McGarrett Williams family home with a mixed sense of both excitement and trepidation.

She has never seen a male omega before, nonetheless a pregnant one.  
She has also never entered a the home of a nesting alpha. She's heard enough stories to have believed it was something she would neither want to do nor have the chance to do -- but here she is.

But a friend of a friend (of a friend) of some guy named Joe asked her for a favor and promised a career breaking scoop for her journalism career, and she was in no position to say no.

Pulling out a compact mirror, she does a quick check. Her fiercely curly brown hair is contained and professional, her cat eye eyeliner is on point, and her red-orange lipstick is bold.

She does feel bold.

She feels like she's going to bit in the neck by a middle aged man.

But she straightens her suit jacket (from the half price clearance rack at Kohl's) and stands as tall as she can, knowing that this is an opportunity she is lucky to have, and wondering where it may advance her career to.

Nellie was born a beta, so she can't smell the overbearing musk of dominant Alpha but she doesn't need to be an alpha or an omega to know that this guy could probably kill her with his bare hands. There's a glint in his bright green eyes that almost hints that some deep, dark forgotten part of him actually wants to.

"So this is what an alpha den looks like," she raises her brows, glancing around. There are at least three deadbolts on the door and when they pass through the living room toward the kitchen, at least two cameras follow her movements, showing her in black and white on a small screen at a hutch near the kitchen table.

"Is this good? Here?" The alpha asks gruffly, gesturing to the old wooden table.

Nellie nods. "Perfect."

The alpha goes to sit down before he awkwardly pauses, hunched over. "Did you want... uh... Water or something?"

"Oh no, love, I'm good," she flashes a smile, rifling through her purse for her favorite pen, paper, and recorder.

She's about to ask him where his mate is -- the one the article is really going to be about -- when a handsome, short man with slicked back blonde hair walks into the kitchen in a pair of black sweat pants and a grey v-neck shirt.

And he has a very round, obviously pregnant belly.

Nellie's mouth drops in surprise. Holy shit.

It only takes a second for the guy to catch her scent and he freezes like a spooked cat; something wild flashes in his eyes before he looks over at his mate.

"This is the reporter Joe called about last night, babe, it's okay," the alpha says quietly, springing out of his chair with cat like grace to put a hand on the other guy's bicep. "You're fine."

She hears this high pitched, inhuman noise and looks around before she realizes it's coming from the omega -- he's whining, which isn't good. It means he's not fully on board with this.

Awkwardly, Nellie pretends to be distracted by something in her purse as the two speak, almost too low for her to hear until there's definitely a hiss.

"Do you want to go back? Danny? Do you? Because if we don't do something, they'll get a court order and come take you away again, and they'll dart me if I even try to stop them!" The larger man warns, holding the omegas wrist in a death grip.

When they finally sit down, the blonde looks a little sullen about it, and Nellie notices that the tips of his nails are elongated into clearish looking claws with little hooks on the end that dig into the table.

Finding her throat dry suddenly, Nellie glances quickly toward the back door, trying to judge how quickly she'd be able to high tail it if something goes down.

"Omegas don't like strangers in their nests this late in the game," Steve mutters, gesturing to Danny's stomach. "Even the ones that are here to help us."

"Don't take it personally," Danny grumbles. "I just didn't know we were uh... Actually going through with this crazy, fucked up plan."

Nellie purses her lips. "Joe just told me that you guys have a story, one that has to be heard?" Her eyes drift over to the omega's heavy stomach; "And I'm assuming it has something to do with the baby."

"Babies," the blonde sighs, resting an elbow on the table as he leans his forehead into his hand.

"Oh fun -- how many?" Nellie asks excitedly, but the two men visibly stiffen at the question, and she's left wondering if she's asked the wrong thing.

"Two," Steve says softly, sadly almost, and the omega just looks away, hiding his eyes. "That's part of why you're here," the alpha explains. "We were originally going to have--"

"Steven," the omega warns suddenly, cutting him off, and his eyes are shining.

"Danny, we need to get public opinion on our side--"

"I think that that is possible without telling the fucking world that I --" his voice wavers and he quiets suddenly, "That I had a miscarriage."

Nellie gasps, placing a hand over her mouth and the blonde looks up at her, face expressionless, but his eyes are painfully portraying everything beneath his calm exterior.

"I was submitted for mandatory research by the state -- omega research -- and separated from my mate for a few weeks," Danny explains. "It was very stressful. They knew this, but they didn't care, and I..."

He clears his throat, taking a breath.

"My adrenal system crashed, I'm pretty sure directly because of the separation, and I lost one of the pups."

"I'm sorry for your loss. I truly just... Can't imagine what you guys have been through," she says slowly, shoulders falling when she realizes they're holding hands tightly under the table. "Alphas and omegas have to be near each other all of the time?" Nellie asks, sliding the digital recorder closer to the pair.

"When he's pregnant, we do," Steve explains and God the second and third words sound so weird to her when they're strung together. Trying to hide her blatant intrigue, Nellie steeples her fingertips together slowly -- calmly, stay calm.

When she starts to ask about the facility itself, and the Alpha has to go back in time a few months to explain how these people apparently burst into his home. The omega explains how afraid he had been that they were going to take him away and arrest Steve on the spot, and recounts how he had had to hide in the back seat of an old car in the garage.

Joe was right.

This is definitely a story that people need to hear. A career making story.

xxxxxx

Danny puts up with the reporter as long as he can stand to before he disappears up into the office with the excuse that he's going to sort through case files.

The photos of the hands are right up on top of the pile, and he sits down slowly in Steve's father's old chair before realizing that the chair still permanently smells like Steve's father -- a strange alpha.

He frowns, feeling the familiar primal itch under his skin spread through him, as the scent triggers his instincts, urging that he's too exposed. It's coming on stronger than he remembers if even the people related to Steve smell like a threat. 

Safe place. Need a safe place.

This room is too open.

Danny pulls himself to his feet, vaguely registering an unfamiliar twinge in his abdomen as he does so, almost like a cramp. The feeling only starts to intensify.

xxxxx

Steve is describing what his two weeks were like without his omega at home with him, getting into the shameful memory of wandering drunkenly into the ocean.

He had taken a bottle of Jack in his hand with him into the water because he hadn't been able to cope with the bond sickness on top of the grief, not even for one sobering minute of staring up at the lonesome sunset above the beach. The next thing he remembers, is Cath using her alpha strength to manhandle him up the wet beach, snarling at him furiously.

He's about to admit that he'd started sleeping in his truck outside of the facility when he hears a faint and pained howl coming from upstairs.

"Danny," Steve breathes in a panic, looking behind him at the screen of the monitor to see that his mate is curled on the floor in pain. "Stay here," he says quickly to the girl. Springing out of his seat, Steve claws his way up the stairs in a matter of seconds and sprints down the hall toward the nest.

It takes Steve a moment to realize that his mate is on the floor of the closet, curled on his side with his back and his knees bent. He's covered in a sheen of sweat, panting slowly when he looks up and locks his frightened blue eyes onto Steve.

"Omega," Steve breathes when his primal brain fills in for his inability to put words together. "What's wrong? What's happening?"

Danny clenches his eyes shut, trying to breathe through the pain. "I don't know, it just -- it just started, I don't know what this is, Steve, it's too early for labor..."

Steve reaches up to rest his fingertips on his scalp in a panic, holding his head as he tries to mentally sort through the information from the books he's been cataloging since he found out about the pups. "Ah... Braxton Hicks! Is it Braxton Hicks contractions?"

Danny sighs, looking up at him from the floor nervously and rubs over his stomach with both hands. "I don't know, but I think it's starting to stop..."

The alpha goes to pull him out of the closet and Danny digs his claws into the carpet in protest. "No, no, wait! I can't -- I wanna stay in h--"

  
"The closet? Danny, there's a perfectly good bed three feet from here where you can rest while I call the doctor." Steve goes to pull him out and this time the omega snaps at his hand, teeth clenching together when the Alpha jerks his hand back just in time.

Danny glares at him, baring his teeth, and Steve stares hard at him in confusion. At this point, he thinks, rationale is probably useless.

Steve raises up his hands in surrender, finally, and pulls himself up to walk toward the bed. After taking the blankets and sheets off of the bed and handing them to Danny, Steve watches as Danny starts to shred them into pieces, and he debates pulling out his camera phone for when the omega is pissed off and wondering what happened to the Egyptian cotton sheets.

He also realizes that he's got to get this Nellie woman out of the house before semi-feral Danny realizes she's still there, and it's bound to be a lovely awkward conversation.

xxxxxx

An hour later Steve's sitting on the floor of the closet, rubbing Danny's back as he sleeps, curled up on the soft pile of shredded blankets and sheets.

He had rushed the rest of the interview, and had expected Nellie to try to take some sort of photo, because there was a camera suddenly in the table when he returned downstairs, but she never did. After ushering her out, Steve had called the doctor three times to ask about the Braxton Hicks contractions, but it kept going straight to voicemail. Resigning himself to staring at the case files and evidence from the lab, Steve is sitting in relative silence when Danny suddenly whines next to him.

Steve's eyes flick up from the page. The blonde is clenching his eyes shut and frowning in his sleep, and Steve gently shakes him awake.

"It's just a nightmare, babe," he whispers, sad because he knows it's probably another THRESH nightmare. Danny just stares up at him from the floor in confusion, grumbling a disconcerted noise in the back of his throat.

Steve says a silent prayer that Joe's plan is going to work. 

Xxxx

When, the next morning, his phone alarm goes off, Steve groans and starts to shake Danny awake.

They’re in the bottom of the godforsaken closet, and the alpha stares up in annoyance at the light switch that he can’t reach. He slowly pulls himself to his feet and tries to gently stir his partner awake, only to get a blind swipe of claws in his direction.

Steve sighs, stepping over the omega instead and walking out to get dressed for work.

“We can’t be late this morning,” he calls out, grabbing a pair of cargo pants out of his closet, but there’s no answer, only a loud groan. “Danno, babe, get up, we’ve got a meeting at 7:00.”

No answer.

“Babe,” he says louder, leaning to look in the closet, and his little mate is still curled up on a pile of blankets. Steve bites down on the inside of his lip, going over to stand above him with his hands on his hips. “I need to go in, and so do you. You can sleep in my office.”

“Lemme sleep. You brought that fucking girl into the house and it drove my omega side wacky all night. I’ll drive in when my shift actually starts. In an hour,” Danny sighs.

Steve huffs out a long breath, eyes flicking over to glance out the window. “I’m not leaving you here alone until after THRESH officially excuses you from going back to them. So get up, you can sleep in my office.”

The omega makes a feeble attempt to push himself back into a sitting position, and winces. “I feel like I got hit by a truck…”

“Probably because you slept in a closet, buddy,” Steve reaches out, lifting him -- with more effort than he remembers from last time-- and Danny clutches his shoulders with his claws in surprise

Steve sets him on his feet and holding him steady as he waits for the omega’s blood pressure to catch up with him before helping him out to the car.

Danny is already asleep when Steve runs back out to the car after fixing a bagel and cream cheese for him. Sighing with a frown of concern, Steve wraps the bagel in a paper towel. He tucks the wrapped bagel into the center console with his phone, where Chin has texted him that he’s pretty positive that Jerry is on to something.

 

Xxxx

"So you're telling me that a lot of these so called 'cult symbols' were really just badly drawn and malformed runes?" It’s 7:10 and the meeting has started; Steve’s at the head of the table, as usual, with a cup of lukewarm black coffee that gets worse with every sip.

"And random ones at that,” Jerry replies, raising his brows dramatically. “It's like someone just googled 'runes' and hastily carved the first thing that came up. There's nothing carved into the skin about... Say... Power, success, revenge, fortune, death, or life."

"What type of mix did the killer end up with?" Steve leans back in his chair.

"The equivalent of refrigerator magnet poetry," Jerry scoffs, gesturing haphazardly with a hand. "Chair. Horse. Shovel. Wheat. Ladybug. Grass. Random things like that."

"Pretty deep, man," Kono mutters, catching Jerry's eye and causing him to laugh.

"This is a pretty powerful looking setup to not get your ancient symbols down correctly," Steve muses, looking up from the screen to glance around the office.

"Exactly, boss!" Jerry snaps. "It's powerful looking. That's it. It's like it was all for show or something."

The alpha leans forward. "What other evidence do you have to support that conclusion besides the miswritten runes?"

Jerry flips through his notes. "Well, it was a clockwise spiral."

"And that means?" The alpha waves his hands up to gesture expectantly at Jerry.

"Clockwise spirals are meant to grow things -- to create energy toward a purpose. Which made no sense."

"Why not?"

"Well, boss," he sputters, as if it's painfully obvious and Steve raises a brow. "The moon phase from the night of the alleged ritual was a waning moon."

Steve deadpans. "Jerry, come on here -- I’m not exactly the new age, ‘wooo wooo-ish type.’"

Kono snickers under her hand.

  
Chin frowns, casually pointing a finger in Jerry’s direction. "I think I've heard about this actually, Jerr; the waning moon is supposed to symbolize the elimination or decreasing of something, isn't it? The opposite of creating anything."

"Ding ding ding!" Jerry ruffles the papers in Chin's direction. "Exactly. You've got two major fundamental metaphysical themes going against each other."

"So you're telling us that this is the equivalent of someone mixing and acid and a base and getting a neutral mixture. And no occultist wants a neutral set up for a ritual?" Kono glances up from the files.

  
"Pretty much, dude." Jerry nods at the camera and collapses back into his rolling chair and fans his hands out to gesture widely. "That whole creepy get up was about as magically effective as a sock."

Steve purses his lips. "But why the occult paraphernalia, then, if they have no actual metaphysical interest in it? Why even go through all that effort?"

"That's the big question now, Boss," Chin responds, exhaling slowly.

Steve chews the inside of his lip. "So we've got some kind of hothead, bluffing type. Wants to seem powerful but isn't..." He pauses. “Or a novice whack job that doesn’t know what the hell he’s doing. Could easily be that.”

Jerry shrugs. “True.”

Steve leans forward to rest his elbows on the table. “And speaking of whack job, how’s the lead with the butcher panning out?”

Chin turns in his chair to look at him. “The guy has a solid Alibi, boss. Lives in an assisted living home, hasn’t left for a year. I don't think he’s had any visitors either. His family was pretty much disgusted with him.”

“Yeah, well, we know why. But we don’t know why his DNA is under the fingernails at a crime scene from a month and a half ago,” Steve sighs. “Could it be a half match? Like a son or daughter?”

“I asked the lab that, too,” Kono explains. “No dice; he’s got no kids and it’s a full match anyway. It’s The Butcher’s DNA for sure.”

Chin looks back down at the tablet. “Lab says they thought they identified one of the bodies’ limbs… but they’re retesting.”

Steve starts forward. “If they got a hit in the database, why are they retesting?”

“Because the thumbprints supposedly matched a prostitute that went missing fifty years ago, boss. The hand that we have isn’t an old woman’s hand. It’s a young woman’s -- no older than twenty-five years old.”

Steve furrows his brow. What in the hell?  
“So we think it's a mis-hit in the system?”

Chin sighs. “Unless she was deported into another dimension for fifty years,” he pauses, looking across the table, “And no, Jerry, that is not a possibility we’re going to consider, for the third time!”

Steve smirks, shaking his head. God he’s missed his betas.

Kono leans forward suddenly to catch his eye. "Boss, where's Danny?"

Steve purses his lips, steepling his fingertips. "He's ah... He's fine." The alpha glances toward his office. “I think the whole carrying thing is catching up with him, he can barely stay awake.”

xxxx

An hour later, Danny walks out of Steve’s office toward the tech table, but he can’t concentrate.

Besides the fact that he’s still exhausted, Cath is walking around with so much Vic's vapor rub under her nose and around her neck that she's successfully cleared her own sinuses as well as that of everyone else in the Five-0 department. On top of that, he can think about is the article hitting the newspapers the next morning, in the Sunday paper. The day he's supposed to go back to THRESH.

"What's that smell?" Steve mutters, wincing as he steps out of the lab.

"It's your ex," Danny says quietly. "Otherwise every time she gets near me we both get a little... Riled up. She's trying to cover her own scent and block whatever she picks up from me under my masking deodorant."

"Nice of her to do that," Steve mutters, heading toward the coffee with a file in his hand.

"Considering that she voluntarily smells like Mr. Freeze's cool, mentholated asshole, yes, it is."

Chin, just within ear shot, chokes on his coffee, laughing.

"Very funny," Steve mutters,placing a hand on his hip. "Round up the team, we're going out to research leads today."

Danny looks up. "Where are we headed?"

Steve shifts awkwardly. "Kono and I are speaking to some landowners across the island."

The omega narrows his eyes. "What do you mean 'Kono and I'?"

"I mean, Danny, that I don't want you out around town until we know what kind of media backlash this article is going to get," Steve says sternly, giving him the don't challenge me look.

"So let me get this straight. You get to go drive all over the island, but you're making me stay behind, even though article mentions both of us?" Danny snaps. "Oh no, I get it. It's because I'm an omega."

Steve looks away, shaking his head. "I'm suspending you from field work, because you're an omega that happens to be eight months along carrying my pups, and we're not having this conversation."

Danny throws his hands up. "Seriously, Steven? You think I can't handle riding around in a fucking car for a few hours?"

Steve suddenly whips around and roars at him -- really roars -- and Danny feels all of the air leave his chest. He quickly stares down at his feet in submission, and Steve turns, apparently satisfied with his reaction, and just keeps walking toward the coffee as Kono and Cath and Jerry all poke their heads out of their offices.

Danny manages to stand another minute or so, blushing furiously at his alpha forcing him to submit at the office in view of his co-workers, before he quietly walks into his office and locks the door.

xxxx

  
Kono looks over at him three times on the way to the first on the list of houses before the alpha loses his patience.

"What?" Steve mutters gruffly, not taking his eyes off the road.

Shrugging silently, Kono stares back down at the stack of papers in her gloved hands. "Nothing."

Steve frowns. "You think I was too hard on him?" When he glances over at his junior officer, she's pursing her lips, now staring pointedly at the department issued tablet with her brows raised as if to say 'your words, not mine.'

A beat passes, and the alpha grits his teeth. "Kono, the last time I let him investigate leads, I ended up flossing my teeth with someone's arteries. The only thing Danny should be focusing on right now is keeping the pups safe and healthy until they're ready to come out."

"He may have buns in the oven, but he's more than just an oven," Kono says quietly. "He's Danny. He's your partner, your back up, and there's nothing he hates more than being sidelined."

"I get that. And I hate doing it." Steve sighs. "But I can't focus on the case unless I know he's somewhere safe. It's hard enough for me to even let him come in to work -- I'm compromising as much as I can here."

"What are you afraid of happening to him?"

Steve is silent for a long moment as his piercing green eyes stare hard down the road, he hasn’t told any of the team that Danny is supposed to go back because he doesn't want any of them bringing it up and upsetting his mate.

"It’s a long story,” he mumbles, and a beat passes. “It basically distills down to the fact that the farther along Danny gets with the pups, the less control I feel like I have over myself."

Kono frowns. "So it's not even really about Danny, is it?"

Steve twists his hands on the wheel uneasily like he's debating whether or not to admit this. "I don't trust myself not to kill someone that accidentally bumps into him on the street. I can't take this shit anymore, it's like one day my brain just became hard wired to skip logic and reason and go straight to maim and kill, and I've been trying to hide it--- but...that's probably the biggest underlying cause. "

Kono puts a soothing hand on the tense Alpha's shoulder. "Maybe you should tell Danny, boss. Because right now he thinks you think he's not capable... and I'd hate for him to do something lolo and stupid to prove you wrong."

Exhaling loudly in a huff of resignation, the alpha turns to her with a frown. "You really think he’d do something like that?”

“You really think he wouldn't? He’s not exactly Mr. Level-Headed,” Kono retorts. “When he found out about the pups, he ran off the highway into some bamboo. Said he passed out going about 110 miles per hour.”

Steve slams on the brakes and Kono scrambles to grab the dash to steady herself, but all of her papers and the tablet shoot forward onto the floor board. “Jesus!”

“He did what?”

Kono blinks at him like he’s crazy. “Did you not know that?”

Steve’s fangs are popped. “No, I didn’t know that.”

His young partner is speechless. “Me and Cath picked him up after; he was like, covered in mud and was a total wreck. We took him to your place. You were gone, and he hadn't told anyone he was pregnant yet."

Steve feels a chilling clench of guilt settle in his chest, suddenly feeling even worse for leaving Danny right after mating him. A voice in the back of his head whispers that he owes it to Danny to stay by his side no matter what, even if it means taking him along while they drive around all day, and he screeches the truck to a more gentle stop, pulling a u-turn.

But behind him, three white vans pull a U-turn at the same time.

Steve’s eyes immediately flick up to the rear view mirror.

“Uh, boss…”

“I see them,” he says gruffly.

xxxxxxx

Danny looks up when Chin knocks on his office door.

"Come in," he calls out, and the beta cracks open the door to lean in.

"Ah... Danny?" Chin says slowly, and the blonde detective raises his brows.

"What's up?"

"Did you call in Richard Hekelea for more questioning?" Chin is drowning in concern.

Danny shrugs, turning to him in his rolling chair with his hands resting on top of his bump. "Yeah."

Chin is silent for a moment, stepping in and placing a hand on his hip. "Why?"

Pulling a face at him, Danny brings up a hand in annoyance. "To question him, Chin, what do ya think I wanna hang out with him? Play shuffle board and wink at the old broads down on the boardwalk?"

"It's just that he has a solid alibi, brah. Totally checks out."

Danny furrows his brow. "And yet his DNA is under one of those hands' fingernails."

"I understand that the lead is still technically open," Chin crosses his arms. "But are you sure you should be doing this? Getting up close and personal with someone this twisted"

The omega narrows his eyes, because even though Chin's not an alpha, protectiveness is curling off the guy like steam and filling Danny's office with a sour scent.

"I've questioned suspects before, Chin, thank you for your concern," he says pointedly.

"You weren't carrying before," Chin sighs. "Danny, I'm trying to keep my word to Steve."

The blonde rolls his eyes and slowly pulls himself to his feet with a groan. "Annnnd there it is," he mutters. "Look, I'm pretty sure the worst thing he could do is throw his dentures at me. I think I can manage."

He leaves Chin standing in his own office as he walks out to find that Hekelea is already in the interrogation room, unrestrained but sitting in the chair, waiting.

  
The omega steps into Steve's office briefly, rifling through a pile of folders before he finds Hekelea's records, and tucks the file under his arm, walking into the interrogation room. When Danny glances over at him silently, he notices the guy's foggy gaze has focused immediately on his stomach and Danny holds the folder in front of his bump, clearing his throat.

"I'm Detective Williams," he says slowly. "And I have a few more questions to ask you about your prior conviction, Richard."

The old man grunts something in reply, scowling at him under his breath.

Danny deadpans. "I didn't catch that, ah, _at all_ actually, but I'm going to assume you said of course, Detective Williams, I would be happy to help."

Richard sudden looks up, locking eyes with him. "I said you're pregnant. Why the hell am I being questioned by an omega?!"

Danny brings up a hand to his middle. "Oh this? This is beer and pizza. I just need to hit the gym."

The old man huffs at him. "You're holding your pups too carefully for that, smartass. I know an omega when I see one."

  
Danny ignores the blush creeping up his neck. "Do you have something against omegas? Feel like they need to learn their place? Something like that?" He sits on the edge of the table near the edge of the room.

"They were a dime a dozen when I was growing up," the guy mutters. "Couldn't swing a dead cat in Honolulu without hittin' an omega."

Danny raises a brow at the mental image, glancing down at his files. "Must've been annoying. You sound like you can't stand them."

"I fell in love with one," the man spits. "Love of my life, so how's about that, you prick?"

The omega's brows raise up to his hairline in surprise. "You never married -- says so in this file."

Richard is silent a long time.

Danny cocks his head. "Sounds like it didn't end well, then."

"She disappeared," he mutters, crossing his arms. "Did some kind of church retreat for omegas or some malarkey like that -- I was never religious, but I couldn't stop her. She never came back." Richard ducks his head, looking at his hands.

Danny is silent, "You report her missing?"  
"Of course I did!" The guy yells, snarling, and it's so loud that the pups lurch suddenly against his kidneys.

Grimacing in pain, Danny runs a hand back over his forehead to regain his composure, resisting the urge to place a hand over the pups. "I'll be right back," he manages to croak, getting up to walk out of the room because fucking hell that fucking hurt.

"They said she left me after she 'found God' during the retreat. But I know they did something to her," Richard mutters suddenly.

"Because you're such a good guy," Danny rolls his eyes, and that really gets the guy going.

He starts forward in his chair and for a second Danny's hand drifts over his gun. "You listen to me! I know they did. I know they did it, God dammnit, they probably brainwashed her -- she loved me! But I got them back for it, didn't I?" He starts to laugh with his raspy voice. "I got them back, six years in a row!"

Danny pauses in the doorway, turning back to glance at the guy in concern because the guy is batshit crazy.

Chin is waiting anxiously outside of the room. "Danny?"

The omega grits his jaw. "Yes, Chin?" He says lyrically with sarcastic enthusiasm. "And, as you can see, I have managed to survive questioning a frail, eighty-seven year old man with serious rejection issues."

"There's something you need to see," he frowns, flipping on the tech table's huge screen and flipping to a live stream of the local news.

The first thing he sees on the screen is Steve's face.

"Oh shit."

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are update fuel (along with lots and lots of Chinese take-out).


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! Also, never take summer classes. Bad idea. BAD IDEA. Beta credit to the fabulous and brilliant Bankroll1001!

 

Steve had expected a cartel, a gang, or organized theft. He had not expected, after slamming on the brakes to confront whoever the fuck was ballsy enough to follow him, at least four different microphones to get shoved in his face.

"Commander McGarrett -- how do you feel knowing that your mate is supposed to go back to THRESH in less than twelve hours?"

"Commander!" A suave looking tall man interrupts his speechless stare. "Commander, why isn't Detective Williams with you right now? And are you both still committed to the cases Five-0 is handling for the governor??"

Steve pushes the microphone away from his face gently, clearing his throat, and looks up at the tall man. "I'll ... ah... have another statement prepared by tonight," he says. "But right now, I'm, well -- I'm working a dangerous case and I need to get back to my office."

The reporters, a mass of hungry eyes, stare at him expectantly for another second until he awkwardly leans in to add "... That's all I'm going to comment right now."

The reporters explode into another round of questions, and Steve waves them off, shaking his head in frustration. As he rolls up his window, he calls out to them one last time; "You should be asking THRESH the questions, because I think a lot of people are gonna want some answers."

He honks his truck's horn twice and slowly pulls back onto the road, glancing back at the mass of news trucks wearily. It crosses his mind that they may have even figured where his house is. Or where Danny is.

He flips on the switch for his police lights, speeding away from the news vans toward Five-0 headquarters.

 

**XXXXXXXXXXXX**

 

Danny watches the live feed of the reporters swarming his mate's blue truck. Steve tries to politely decline commenting on the questions and he even hears his own name mentioned a few times. The omega's hand is rubbing over his mouth as he mutters a few swears under his breath and he suddenly feels the need to sit down.

When Steve bursts through the doors, his eyes are wild and his chest is puffed outward. "Danny?" He barks.

The omega is sitting in a rolling chair by the tech table and Chin is waving a bottle of water at him. "I can hear the people in the parking lot from here," the small detective mutters, tapping pointedly at his ear when he glances up at his mate.

Chin furrows his brows and walks over to look out through the blinds down at the parking lot. He looks like he's staring down at something, and gives a low whistle, turning to look at the alpha. "I'm assuming you just walked through that crowd of media reps down there?"

Steve nods, walking toward his mate. "Security's not letting them past the front desk." He then kneels down beside Danny, and Chin politely averts his eyes to give them a moment of privacy.

"You alright?" Steve asks softly, resting a hand on his shoulder. He searches Danny's tired, cobalt blue eyes.

"Me? I'm fine. Fine," the omega mutters, staring down at his wringing hands. "I just have an audience of strangers waiting to crowd me and stick electronics in my face and I'm eight months pregnant, but hey, that's just a Tuesday around here lately, isn't it?"

"Hey." Steve rubs his shoulder gently. "We've got this. This is what we needed to happen, alright? It's just a day earlier than we thought."

Danny nods silently and reaches out a hand for Steve to help him up to his feet. "I've gotta finish up with Hekelea," he sighs rubbing his still sore kidney. "He seems more chatty with me than he was for Cath."

Steve attempts to follow him to the interrogation room, because he doesn't want his mate and pups that close to a cannibalistic psychopath, eighty-seven or twenty-seven.

Chin appears suddenly, looking about as unnerved as the guy can get, which is still mysteriously like a state of zen. "I hate to tell you this, boss, but THRESH is on line one."

The alpha freezes, staring through the glass at his exhausted mate, and shakes his head.

"Tell them the ball is in their court; I've got nothing else to say to them," he says sternly. "I'm trying to catch a serial killer."

 

   **XXXXXXXXXXXX**

 

As the sun starts to set, Steve realizes that he wants to avoid dealing with the media springing on him like power-suit-wearing vultures as he sets foot outside to get to his truck, and decides to stay late at the office. He and Danny start the evening off side by side on the tufted leather couch in his office, but the alpha ends up slouching low in his seat with his mate leaning against his shoulder, drifting in and out of sleep. Steve's hand is resting on Danny's bump, trailing his fingertips over the tight skin as it ripples with their pup's movement, and every so often, a particularly strong kick at his fingertips makes him smile and pat the skin in response.

He expects his betas to leave at the end of the scheduled workday as usual, especially Kono who apparently has a new alpha beau waiting for her at home that he hasn't met. However, Kono, Chin, and Max gather outside of the glass windows to his office, expectantly waiting for direction, far later than their usual shifts.

"It's Saturday night -- what the hell are all of you still here, for? You guys are supposed to be out having fun," he barks, but he's amused, and, honestly, their loyalty is endearing.

"If you stay, we stay, Boss," Chin gently and tosses a Chinese takeout menu on the Alpha's desk.

"Beef and broccoli for me and Steamed chicken with vegetables for Danno," he says quietly, leaning to hand the menu back to him.

"No," Danny mutters suddenly, not opening his eyes but apparently not actually sleeping. "Danno will be having fried pork dumplings, mushu chicken, egg foo young, and fried green tea ice cream."

Steve blinks. "Jesus Chr--"

"If you value your life, Steven, you're not gonna finish that sentence," Danny snaps, snuggling closer into his side. "I've got two little parasites to feed."

Steve elbows him in the ribs gently. "I told you not to call them that."

Danny yawns. "Fine. My two sweet, precious little bipedal leeches."

Rolling his eyes, Steve glances up at Chin who's smiling knowingly at the two of them. "Get him whatever he wants," he concedes, pulling the department credit card out of his wallet but pauses, feeling his ears perk.

Danny hums against him, settling in and shutting his eyes, but he hears it too -- the sound of footsteps running down the hall from the elevator; "It's Jerry."

The betas look confused for a second before the large occult specialist bursts through the Five-0 department doors, huffing and puffing. Steve re-adjusts his mate and is in front of Jerry before anyone even registers that he's moving.

"What is it?" Steve asks, arms crossed.

"Ch-channel five!" Jerry wheezes, and Chin rushes to turn on the tech table screen, flipping to the evening news. "I walked past...the TV... in the IT b-break room and saw it!"

"Saw what?" Kono quips, furrowing her brow, but her question is answered when the camera pans.

A large man with a dark angular beard and severe, wild looking eyebrows is wearing a sharp black suit as he sits crossed legged in a red leather chair. The ticker at the bottom of the screen says "Dr. Logan Landsfort, President of The Hawaiian Registry of Endangered Subgender Humans." There's a glass of water next to him and young African American woman in a royal blue suit is seated just at the edge of the camera, almost out of view.

The reporter's voice is calm, but serious. "And what exactly is it that THRESH is aiming to accomplish?"

The man brings up a hand casually. "Omegas are dying. We want to stop it. Depression in Alpha's is up almost ten percent every year, we think, because a lot of them are simply not compatible with betas. Society is losing one of its most vital components -- Omegas."

The group hears a loud snort behind them and Danny is leaning up against the wall, staring bitterly at the screen. Steve moves to stand by him.

"You describe them like they're some sort of precious gem, yet we've read about what Daniel Williams went through under your facility's care. It sounded traumatic. How do you reconcile that, I think the people of Hawaii are wondering."

The man clenches his jaw but smoothes it over genially into an inquisitive expression. "Simple. We are trying to save his life -- and lives of others like him."

The team bursts out in anger and Steve shushes them, staring intently at the screen. Beside him, Danny is bright red -- either from being enraged, or feeling exposed from being discussed on the news.

"In the interview that was conducted with the family, Steven McGarrett -- a prominent figure of local Law Enforcement -- explains how he was separated from Daniel, despite carrying three pups, and as a result, Daniel experienced bond sickness so severe that he lost one of the babies."

A dark expression flickers across the man's face like a shadow for the briefest of seconds. "Steven McGarrett was in Alpha rehab for almost three months in the beginning of Daniel's pregnancy, leaving Daniel at risk and particularly sensitive."

Steve huffs air out of his nose and feels his shoulders tense with suppressed anger.

"Steven also failed to make sure Daniel had proper medical care, and had yet to even try to arrange for his carrying omega to see a doctor," the man says pointedly and Steve growls that the man has started to lie. "It seems like Mr. McGarrett is better suited for crime-fighting than fatherhood, and that's not something we can help. But by having access to Danny to provide him free medical care, lousy fathers like Steve will no longer be able to add to the detriment of Danny's kind."

"That son of a BITCH," Danny snarls. "I can't fucking believe this!"

Steve throws the closest thing he has -- a department coffee mug -- against the wall where it shatters and he's about to storm out of the room when the interviewer asks a very important question.

"But considering that you're already aware that Danny is especially sensitive to separation -- and apparently -- doesn't represent the typical biochemically balanced Omega, how can you claim that it's in his best interest to bring him back to the facility for more testing?"

Steve freezes.

Landsfort's mouth drops in an 'O' shape and he looks off screen as if no one told him this question was coming. He looks mad.

The interviewing woman continues. "If his biology is an outlier, so to speak, then studying him isn't really going to help you learn about other omegas, is it?"

Landsfort sputters. "Well -- ah, no, but... we have obligations to fulfill quotas of research subjects for the state every year. This is a sort of business, almost -- we have a strict budget and stricter requirements."

"That's funny because the governor of Hawaii is actually on hold to join into this conversation and we're going to ask him about these quotas."

The team leans in close. "Holy shit," Jerry mutters. "Landsfort's getting his ass kicked."

Danny is frozen, hands steepled together like he's praying under his breath, and the screen flickers as a small picture-in-picture box is added to the screen. It's the governor's face, and he's looking down at the screen.

"Good evening," his deep voice says.

"Thank you, Governor, for joining us," the reporter says, as Landsfort looks around in a vague suggestion of suppressed panic.

"Thank you for having me," the governor answers politely.

"Governor, I wanted to allow Mr. Landsfort, the president of THRESH, the chance to speak with you in front of the people of Hawaii, in front of the McGarrett-Williams family, as I'm sure they're watching this..."

Chin moves to place a reassuring hand on Steve's shoulder.

"Of course," the Governor replies. "I'm very familiar with McGarrett and Williams, they're my two best officers."

"Because Mr. Landsfort has admitted here that Daniel Williams's biology doesn't represent that of a typical Omega because of his at-risk sensitivity to separation, but has stated that they still have to bring him in for testing to meet state regulated quotas. What can you tell me about these quotas?"

"These quotas were actually set in 1945, close after the Second World War, and according to the State Constitution of Hawaii, were actually written to limit the amount of omegas that could participate in research."

"That's interesting, Governor, and why would there need to be a ceiling on this amount of research participants?" The reporter's voice hints that she already knows.

"Well, you see, the research paid participants, and a lot of Japanese-Americans had trouble finding work after the war. For the first few years, the research center was flooded with Japanese-American omegas desperate to support their families. That's why the quotas were set as limits."

Landsfort's face is now ghostly pale and his lips are pursed in a tight line.

"So, Governor, would you say that -- based on the State Constitution of Hawaii -- it would be excusable if Detective Daniel Williams were exempt from THRESH research authority?"

"I absolutely would, especially considering that I need them to be able to focus on solving Hawaii's toughest criminal cases."

Danny brings his hands up over his mouth and a suspenseful silence falls over the group.

The interviewer turns to Landsfort. "What do you have to say to that, Mr. Landsfort? Would you agree that it would be both cruel and unnecessary for Daniel to go back to stay at the facility without his mate?"

The man appears to glare at the interviewer for half a beat before he bursts into a creepily cheerful, tight smile that doesn't reach his eyes. "Well, yes. Which is why THRESH has decided within the last week that a private health agent will be supplied for house calls to Daniel to see him through to a safe delivery of two healthy new pups."

"So Daniel can solicit doctors for house calls but technically, doesn't have to associate again with the facility if he chooses not to?"

The man's smile falters. "We're confident that with these new accommodations, ah... Danny will make the right decision and enable us to provide the best care for his pups." He pauses, eyes hardening. "But technically no. Danny doesn't have to associate with us again."

The team jumps up cheering and yelling and high five, but Steve is too stunned to make a sound.

It worked.

Holy _shit_.

They did it.

Danny, shaking slightly next to him, seems unable to process everything at once and just turns to hug him, burying his face in Steve's chest until the alpha feels hot tears soaking through to his skin.

"Danno," he murmurs, sweeping him into his office where he shuts the door and draws the blinds. The omega starts to cry silently against him. "Babe..."

"I've just," he clears his throat, rubbing furiously at the tears with the back of his hand. "I've just got something in my eyes."

Steve grins in amusement and hugs him closer, leaning in toward his neck in the privacy of his office to lick gently at Danny's bond bite. The saliva will start to soak into the skin and calm him down.

"I've been having nightmares every night, you don't understand," Danny whispers. "I thought I..." He trails off, taking a deep wavering breath.

Steve feels his own eyes stinging; "You thought what, babe?"

"I thought I was going to lose the two babies we have left..." Danny whispers, voice broken. "I thought all of this, carrying them, would have been for nothing. That we'd have to return all of the baby furniture. So I haven't even bought any."

Something in Steve's rib cage crushes in on itself in a consuming rush of heartbreak. "Aw, Danno, no... No, no, no. I'm so sorry. I knew, but I had no idea..." He holds Danny tight in his office and pulls back to tip up Danny's chin to kiss him deeply on the lips. "We don't have to worry about that place anymore, babe."

Danny smiles up at his green eyes, and Steve leans in again to kiss his mate. The omega's lips part gently and the tip of Steve's tongue dips into his mouth, smoothing across Danny's tongue tentatively before dominantly delving in to taste the rest of his inviting, warm mouth. Danny leans into his embrace, moving a hand up to hold the back of his powerful Alpha's neck.

Steve's hands start exploring Danny's sensitive chest, trailing delicately into the V of his shirt and eliciting a pleasurable moan from his smaller mate.

"You're making me _wet_ ," Danny murmurs against his lips.

"Good," Steve twists to kiss and bite the sensitive skin of Danny's neck, verifying for himself the heady scent of arousal saturating his mate's feverishly warm skin. He runs his hands over Danny's pup-heavy belly, reminding himself of how deeply he had knotted Danny and filled him with his hot come.

Danny unbuttons the lower few buttons on his shirt, revealing the smooth, tan round bump and fuck, Steve's painfully hard in his cargos when the omega rubs his belly slowly, fingering his own popped navel before raising up to pull on one of his own nipples.

"You tease," Steve leans to kiss the nipple, sucking its pert bud into his hot wet mouth and slurping on it noisily until Danny moans, fiddling blindly at his own belt. Steve deftly unhooks the belt and reaches a hand down into the back of Danny's pants.

The small omega shivers when his mate's finger starts to slide into the slick pool of fluids leaking out of him, rubbing gently at the rim but only barely sinking the tip of his middle finger into him again and again. By the time he adds a third finger, Danny is rocking back against it with an an obscenely wet schlick every time he sinks back against Steve's thrusting hand.

"Turn around," Steve commands in a low voice and Danny turns and braces his arms on the desk. Steve rips down his own pants, wrenching a firm hand onto the back of Danny's neck to roughly hold him still as he lines up before thrusting his entire hard length into his mate with a labored moan of primal satisfaction.

 

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

 

Danny heads down the hall to the lab forty five minutes later, looking thoroughly fucked, but he does his best to hide it by re-tying his tie and tucking his shirt in as neatly as possible. Luckily, after the first not-very-quick-quickie Steve had instigated a few months ago, Danny had learned to keep a spare pair of briefs in his locker.

Now, with the threat of returning to THRESH apparently over, there are burning questions blooming in his thoughts that he can't believe he missed earlier that day.

When he walks in, Max is, disgustingly enough, almost nose deep in a corpse.

Danny feels a flicker of nausea and the beginnings of a gag in the back of his throat.

"I have been informed of the good news," Max says cheerfully, glancing up. "Congratulations, Detective Williams!"

Danny smiles to himself. "Yeah yeah, thank you. It's a good feeling, but I've uh... still got a killer to catch, and it's hangin' over my head."

"Ah, yes. I myself have only one of the original Star Trek figurines to collect and it hangs over my head as well. I imagine it is a similar feeing." Max nods.

"Well, yeah. Except well, I'm not searching on eBay, and a Dr. Spock doll isn't going around killing people," Danny mutters.

"True. However, it is widely known that, during Pon Farr, Vulcans have been known to fight to the death," Max replies.

"I actually have no idea what this Pond Fart thing is but I'll take your word for it," he retorts, then squints at the table. "What's this -- an overdose?" He mutters, leaning in the doorway way.

Max looks up and nods sadly. "Why yes, Detective Williams. I presume you were alerted to the COD because of the lack of visible marks on the body?"

Danny leans to glance at the pale body of the young woman, but he's visibly weary of stepping into the room. There are quite a few chemicals used in the labs that he doesn't want to touch or inhale while he's carrying the pups. "Something like that," he sighs, realizing how young this girl is. This was somebody's daughter, somebody's baby, and the sight of a dead body is disturbing him more than usual because of that thought. "What drug? I don't see track marks or nasal irritation."

"I believe the general population is calling it Eos," he pauses, turning to a whiteboard on the side of the room and snapping off one of his gloves to pick up a marker.

Max starts to write on the board; "E.O.S. = E c s t a s y  O n  S t e r o i d s."

The young coroner turns to him and frowns, "Made from synthetic omegadren."

Danny blinks, remembering how scent drunk Steve gets if he forgets to put on masking deodorant after a shower. "You know, Steve said your buddy Alexei mentioned something like this a while back, that non-omegas are starting to abuse omegadren as a drug."

Max's face falls slightly as he cocks his head to the side. "I am not surprised of his awareness of the issue, given what I can only assume is an avid personal interest in --" he coughs pointedly, "things that could affect the omega community, if one even exists. I would ask him more about it, but I have not been able to reach WingedWraithDruid in the last few online gaming conferences."

Frowning, the omega subconsciously starts to hold his stomach. "We uh... We tried to contact him a few times. Maybe he's just tied down with patients. Maybe it's like broken leg season or something, huh?"

Max chuckles. "Is there a particular reason you are in the lab, I know you have been avoiding it lately, I presume, because of the health risks to the unborn fetuses you are gestating."

"They're pups. Just say I'm carrying pups," Danny grimaces quickly. "You make it sound like a goddamn sci-fi movie when you say it the other way. And yes, as a matter of fact, I do indeed have a question."

Max nods expectantly.

"The miss-hit in the system for the hand that had The Butcher's DNA under its fingernails. What was the name that came up?" He asks slowly, pulling out a pad of paper and a pen.

Pulling off his other glove, Max begins to shuffle through a stack of papers. "This was the profile associated with the error in the system. The woman in the system went missing over fifty years ago, and this hand from the ritualistic crime scene is obviously that of a young woman."

"So what, this hand couldn't a' been frozen?" Danny crosses his arms around himself and tilts his head curiously.

"There's no visible cellular damage from deep freezing," Max points out.

"So what about ah... Un-deep freezing. Shallow freezing, or whatever." Bearing the risk of actually entering the lab because his feet are throbbing in pain, Danny eases himself into a rolling chair a few feet away from the autopsy table.

Max tightens one corner of his mouth. "The time spent enduring the humidity in a standard kitchen/warehouse freezer unit from fifty years ago would have set in bloating and rot."

"I think I'm starting to get some of that myself," Danny mutters dryly, twisting his aching feet. "So there's no way this hand could be that old?"

Considering his question for a second, Max frowns. "In review of the equipment typically accessible to the general population -- as a question of probability and statistics -- I find it extremely unlikely that anyone could have preserved this hand this well for that long."

Danny shakes his head. "Well, damn Max. You're just full of "no's" tonight. I need a 'yes,' just one -- to go on."

The coroner chuckles, holding up a small circular buzz saw that he's going to presumable use to cut open someone's chest cavity with, and Danny flinches. His primal brain yells THREAT at the sight of the 'weapon' and he tries to shake the thoughts off, to no avail. Eyeing the thing as his claws start to pop, Danny grabs the paper about the profile mis-hit in the system and heads for the door.

He needs a safe place.

"Detective?" Max yells and he waves him off, muttering an apology.

This place -- this hallway.

It's too open.

"Not again," Danny groans, feeling his fangs start to lengthen in his mouth. His heart starts to race at the sound of footsteps coming down the hallway and he starts to breathe heavier. Trying to hold onto his composure, Danny manages not to run in the other direction but -- Jesus -- he's starting to shake.

When his strong, muscular alpha suddenly appears from around the corner, Danny is already permeated with the sour smell of distress.

Steve stops dead in his tracks and Kono collides awkwardly with the alpha's broad back, having to catch herself.

"Danny?" The alpha reaches out for Danny and the omega rushes up against him, desperately digging his claws into Steve's navy blue button down shirt.

  
Kono frowns. "What's he doing? Is he okay?"

Steve turns his head to glance back at her, rubbing Danny's back. "I dunno. He ah... might have gotten spooked by something. The further along he gets, the easier it is to set him off."

Staring down at Danny's inhuman claws that are clutching at her boss's back, Kono's brows raise up in the center.

"Danny, babe, look at me. Do you need to go home? Would that make things easier?" Steve mutters gently, and it's touching to see her boss being so sweet.

The small detective apparently makes some sort of reply because Steve sighs softly and turns to glance back at her, pursing his lips. He looks fatigued but there's a patient acceptance in his green eyes that's oddly calming. "I'm gonna run him home really quick and come back to pick up our food."

 

**XXXXXXXXXXXXX**

 

As soon as Steve pulls his car back into the driveway with their late dinner, it’s as if the universe is trying to tell him that something is terribly wrong. His radio, which had previously been blasting the Rolling Stones, suddenly screeches into an eerie white noise. The moon instantly goes behind the clouds, and he swears he hears a low rumble of thunder. He soon realizes, however, that the thunder is actually a commotion coming from his own house.

His blood chills instantly and he wrenches the door of the truck open, leaving it unlocked in his haste to scramble towards the front door. His hackles are already raising, and he can feel the adrenaline starting to power into his muscles. Steve doesn't even feel himself leap up the front steps, and he nearly tears the door off the hinges slamming it all the way open. Snarling as he runs into his house, Steve realizes that his worst fear is confirmed.The entire house is filled with the sickly sweet, heart wrenching smell of his pregnant Omega's distress."Danny," Steve breathes, and bounds up the steps three at a time.

If he weren't trying to analyze Danny’s scent to pick up on the health of the pups as he runs full speed down the hall towards the nest, Steve would notice that the smell is familiar to him. He hears shouting, escalated voices viciously screaming at each other, but it’s only when he steps into the doorway that he realizes that he knows the other voice well. Steve bristles, eyes widening at the site before him.

His little pregnant mate is cornered, swiping out with his claws, hissing, and spitting at a tall figure in the dark trying to grab him.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments really make my day between all the grueling summer school homework and classes :c so give me a shout out :D wooo!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, my loves! I've only got a few more weeks of summer classes, so *fwew* life is good. Thanks so much to Bankroll1001 who caught so many huge, fundamental errors in this chapter that it's not even funny. I seriously had whole paragraphs missing, and didn't even notice.
> 
> Onwards! To read!

 

**XXXXXXXXXX**

 

Danny is asleep; he’s warm, he’s safe, he’s in his nest, and everything smells like Steve. Then, suddenly, he’s awake.

There’s a cold hand feeling his stomach. Someone’s got both the comforter and his shirt pulled back, exposing his belly full of pups. It’s an alpha, a female alpha, and she smells like someone familiar with danger and death.

 _Not mate_  
_Not mate_  
 _Danger_  
 _Alpha_  
 _Intruder._

And he’s terrified, instantly.

The Omega half of his brain, in the absence of time for a single rational thought to emerge from the void of sleep, ignites him with a terror so consuming that his lungs seize in his chest. He howls a strangled yelp involuntarily and scrambles backwards off of the bed, landing in a panicked heap on the floor as the strange alpha rushes toward him.

Nearly catatonic with fear, Danny manages to hiss and bare his fangs as his thoughts are split with the primal haze of his instinctive responses.

_Protect my pups_

_My babies_

_She wants to claim me -- kill my pups_

She growls, snarling something at him but Danny’s heart is racing in his ears too loudly; he swipes out with his claws, but holds one hand over his belly.

She's caught him at his most vulnerable state; he’s too swollen with pups to fight her off and Steve isn’t here to protect him.

She lunges forward and tries to get her hands on him again, and Danny dodges out of the way, trying to bolt for the door but she roars, blocking his path.

He starts to feel a cramping sensation in his abdomen, one that he’s felt before, and gasps out, huffing at the pain and whining.

His attacker freezes, staring, and the moonlight glints eerily off of her eyes in the darkness like shards of glass following his every move.

He hears the Camaro’s beastly engine settling in the driveway, and he catches his mate’s scent drifting up the stairs and down the hall. He howls out desperately, hopeful, and gasps out with relief when he feels the tremor of two hundred pounds of enraged alpha male sprinting toward the door of the nest.

Taking advantage of his distraction, she strikes, reaching forward to try and grab the back of his neck. He snarls, snapping at her arms, tasting a bit of blood as he manages to catch her while she rears back; he brings up his claws, slashing violently.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

  
"M-mom?" Steve sputters, feeling his jaw drop. His mother, who is currently trying to grab his furious omega’s wrists, whips her head around to glare at him sharply.

"So nice to find out this way that I'm going to be a grandmother, Stephen!" She hisses sarcastically.

Danny snarls and tears a gash into her black blazer, scratching her just deep enough to break the skin the moment she turns her eyes away from his claws.

"Son of a bitch!" She turns and roars at him in frustration, and Danny hisses at the sound, baring his fangs.

Steve lunges in between them, fanning his arms out protectively to shield Danny. "Stop growling! And why the hell are you in his nest? Do you not know anything about Omega's?!"

Doris grits her teeth, holding the scratch on her arm. "Last I heard, sweetheart, you were single and straight -- and this young man was a BETA!" She roars at him.

"He's too far along to be doing this with you," Steve bellows, raising his shoulders up like hackles. "He's either going to hurt himself or the pups!"

  
"Well he’s already tried to hurt me, and he ruined this suit jacket trying to slash me with those claws!" His mother looks annoyed. “I was once attacked by a tiger in Thailand during an extraction mission, and that thing was tame compared to this mongrel!”

Steve deadpans, eyes widening. "He’s just scared! He’s trying to protect his pups, Doris, Jesus Christ -- what were you thinking coming in here?!”

Her eyes narrow angrily. "I was thinking that my own son didn't tell me he was going to be a father! How do you think hearing about this through military gossip made me feel?"

"Assuming your role as grandmother is anything like your role as a mother, I didn't think you'd feel anything!" Steve hissed.

The female alpha throws her hands up. "Oh for God's sake! Will you never forgive me for that? When the president tells you to go dark, you go dark, damn it!" She roars and Steve roars back, baring his glistening fangs.

Danny suddenly whines behind him in pain and both alphas falter in concern.

  
"What's he doing -- what -- is he hurt?" She tries to step forward to check him, but the small detective lunges at her from behind Steve -- until he stumbles suddenly against the huge alpha’s back. He howls out, finally, in distress.

The sound is like fire burning at the edge of his alpha brain, and to his horror he suddenly has the urge to attack his own mother. She looks at him in confusion when he starts twisting in pain, resisting the urge. "Mom get out of the house, I'm sorry -- go to Joe's for the night or I'll buy you a hotel, just go.”

"What in the world, Steve? He'll get over it, he's just a little pissy because I startled him when he was sleeping," Doris retorts, digging her heels into the carpet in the hallway. "I think I deserve an explanation about all of this!”

"My mate needs me. I can't argue with you," Steve snarls, baring his teeth at her in frustration. Doris bares her teeth angrily, and the challenge sends a pulse through his spine, releasing another onslaught of vicious primal urges. The instincts are countered feebly by his civilized brain telling him that the intruder is his own mother.

He bares his teeth back, showing his fangs, but turns instead to wrap his arms around Danny.

The omega struggles at first, still trying to get free to look for Doris, but Steve carefully tries to keep their bodies flush together.

The detective nearly bursts out of his grip twice in the next minute, hissing up at him with dark eyes. "Calm down -- Danny, Danny, stop! It's me, it's okay," he grunts, struggling to hold him still as the omega starts to scratch up his arms with his claws.

"The alpha," Danny hisses through clenched fangs, and Steve blinks in surprise, jerking his head down to stare at his feral mate who's actually managed to talk. “Threat!”

"What’s he saying?!" Doris snaps from the door and Steve turns to snarl at her to back off.

"The pups!" The omega’s voice breaks.

The rounded bump of Danny's belly is pressed up against his own stomach and Steve reaches down to protectively hold the taut skin in a firm grip. "Danny the pups are fine, they're safe -- I'm here. Just calm down!"

Steve can feel them shifting around under his huge hand, agitated from both the yelling and the adrenaline in Danny's blood. At the thought of his two pups in distress, Steve feels his alpha brain flaring up in rage, and he turns to glare wickedly at Doris. "Are you happy, now?! You've completely scared the hell out of him!"

Doris's face hardens as she crosses her arms, "Steven, I have a right to be here -- I'm family!"

"You may be family, but he doesn't _know_ you. In his mind, a strange alpha could steal him away, take his pups, or even kill them to claim him as their own! To him, you're a threat," Steve roars, gesturing to Danny. "That makes you a threat to me."

"Alpha...Please!" the omega suddenly begs behind him. As if he doesn't know that he needs to protect his mate and unborn pups, and fuck it's hard to hear Danny call him that, because he only does it when he's desperate.

Steve wraps Danny in his arms again, turning to growl at Doris, "Get out."  
She huffs at him, sweeping her shoulder length hair back and storms out of the room.

Steve exhales slowly, shoulders falling as he turns and securely cages the omega in his arms against the wall, towering over him like a giant. The omega is panting anxiously, looking around for Doris as Steve starts to rub the underside of his jaw on Danny's forehead.

After scenting him, Steve reaches down to gently tip up Danny's chin so the spooked omega can only look up at him. "Danny, she's gone. " He says quietly against Danny's ear. "You're fine."  
“She wants the pups," Danny breathes.

He thrashes around for another moment until Steve pulls his hand around to grip him on the back of the neck. “Hey, hey -- stop!"

Danny lets out a disgruntled inhuman sounding noise, sounding betrayed with the off key pitch of defeat. He stiffens like a board in the alpha's arms, looking up at Steve like the alpha has sold him out.  
"Can't let you hurt yourself babe, I'm sorry," he murmurs.

Danny is stiff for another few minutes in his arms, as if he's fighting between the Omega brain and his rational thoughts, until he starts to embrace Steve back.

They’re both silent for a long beat while Danny pants to catch his breath against the alpha's shoulder. Leaning into his alpha’s neck to inhale his scent, Danny tries to calm himself down.

  
**xxxxxxxxxx**

When Danny is asleep on the couch next to him after watching an infomercial for way too long, Steve gently eases the blonde's head off his lap. He replaces a couch pillow under his head, and slowly bends over to drag his flattened tongue over Danny's exposed bond mark. The pheromones would keep him calm and, hopefully, asleep. He leaves the infomercial running, because he knows that, somehow, Danny finds it relaxing when someone tries to sell him a blender for an hour.

He then pulls out his phone to call his mother. He didn't quite know how to phrase this, because there's no nice way to say 'please stop ruining my life.' But he figures he'll play it by ear.

“Doris?” He asks, and her harsh voice confirms.

He starts asking her whether she’s at Joe White's or if she's at a hotel.

“A hotel,” she replies. “Which is insane given that the house that you’re in is still technically mine, in part.”

“Look, Doris,” he pauses. “Mom. You can come stay at the house some weekend in the future, but not while we’re…”

“Nesting,” she says sharply, and he can almost hear that her brows are raised up toward her hairline in disbelief and, probably, a hint of disgust at such a domestic and civilian-typical idea.

“Yes.”

“Look at you now,” she sighs and starts to chuckle wryly. “Straight from Navy seal black-ops to nesting.

"Doris, this is important to me," he says flatly, crossing his free arm over his chest as he paces across the kitchen.

"Nobody said it wasn't important, Steven, it's just unexpected..."

Steve's brows raise. “What's unexpected is me having to assure my mate that my house is still safe enough for him, thanks to you."

"Oh please, like I'm that much of a threat, Steven." Steve sighs in frustration.

"Mom, do you not get it?” he sputters, and pauses because he’s actually called her Mom, and the word is unfamiliar on his tongue. “The pups are making his instincts go crazy right now. He’s sensitive to other alphas, and even that doesn't touch on how uneasy he is about strangers coming to the house, or, jesus, grabbing at his stomach while he's sleeping in his own nest!" He hisses.

"I was trying to feel if he was pregnant, because it looked like he was," she retorts. “I didn't believe what I was seeing!”

"What, the smell of milk and pups through the whole room wasn't strong enough?!"

"HEY. My sense of smell is gone Steve, too much mustard gas in my career. You know that."

Steve rubs at his brow. "Okay, fine. But you could have just asked him! This isn’t the Military -- you don’t pull rank with him!”

“What’s that supposed to mean?!”

Steve rolls his eyes and he’s glad she can’t see him. “It means, Doris, that this isn’t a mission. You can't just barge in on Danny like he’s a black ops objective. This is my family. You have to act -- normal. For once, please. You almost gave him a fucking heart attack!”

"Stevie, I didn't intend to -- to scare him. It's just, look at this from my point of view, and hear me out."

Steve exhaled, leaning with his shoulder against the entry to the living room so he could watch Danny sleep. The blonde had nudged the blanket off of himself and he lay curled on his side with his hand on his round belly. "Fine," Steve whispers.

"I was on base in San Diego and I heard this Lieutenant talking about something his friend was watching on the news in Hawaii about a decorated SEAL, based in Hawaii, that’s mated to this detective that turned out to be an Omega,” Doris sighs. “And I was listening, and they’re talking about how they’re both working for the governor, and I just… I had to know!”

Steve’s brows raise up toward his hairline and he sweeps a hand back up over his hair realizing that they hadn't made national news yet.

“It’s just,” she begins, “I thought you were still dating Catherine. She’s such a nice girl! Next thing I know I come home and there's your partner, Daniel, wearing your navy shirt and I just wanted to be sure, Stevie!”

“Don’t call me that,” Steve mutters quietly.

“Okay, fine, but even though I’m just… surprised at who’s carrying them, those pups are my grandbabies. I don't want anything to happen to them, you have to know that," she implores.

"I hope that's true," Steve whispers, looking down at Danny's serenely peaceful expression. "But I'm going to email you some links to information on male omegas from the Mayo Clinic's website, and I expect you to read them."

He hears her scoff over the phone. "What is this, highschool? You gonna grade me on these?"

"Mom, I'll be lucky if he doesn't go feral the next time he sees you! And if he does, and it somehow hurts the pups, then I’ll be the one that goes feral, and God knows what’ll happen then,” he says flatly, muttering ‘goodnight’ before ending the call.

He then gathers his small mate into his arms and carries Danny up the stairs.

The omega tenses nervously on reflex in Steve's arms when they enter the nest, even though Steve has resented everything in the room, and something in his chest clenches in guilt. "You're okay," he murmurs, grunting slightly as he sets him out on the bed. He carefully rolls him over onto his side, grabbing Danny's camo print body pillow from beside the bed to tuck it gently under his belly to support it.

  
**xxxxxxxxxxx**

Danny is woken by a soft shimmer of sunlight on his face from the morning light filtering through the swaying trees in the backyard.

He stretches, reaching down with both hands to rub over his belly affectionately; “Good morning, little pups.” They’re barely stirring, most likely because there’s not much room left in him, but they still nudge at his hands curiously when they hear his voice, and that will never not feel like something from a sci-fi film.

He frowns, thinking back to how convinced his Omega brain had been that Steve’s alpha mother was going to steal or hurt the pups. Groaning in embarrassment, he runs a hand down over his face and glances around the nest. There are a few claw marks in the walls that he’s going to have to fix with spackling and new layers of paint, and some tufts of the carpet missing.

“Your dads did some redecorating,” he mutters, glancing down. “I like to call this new motif… ‘Freddy vs Jason vs Nate Berkus.’”

He’s still looking around, scratching at his stomach lazily, when Steve leans into the room.

Danny jumps, wincing when it pulls at something on his abdomen, and grits his teeth at his mate. “Christ, Steven. Give a guy a knock or two, I've got like, PTSD.”

“I think you’ve survived worse than my mother,” Steve repeats skeptically.

Danny huffs into the sheets, “Post Traumatically Startled by Doris.”

Steve is silent for a beat. “I called her last night, told her to steer clear for a few weeks… but we might need her.”

Flicking his eyes over, Danny frowns. “For what?”

“I don't know, Danny -- just, stuff.” Steve waves his hands up. “I don't think I’ve ever even changed a diaper before. I don't know what to do if the pups won't stop crying, and I’ve been looking in the baby section at Target and it’s scaring me.”

“How are burp cloths scaring you? You get shot at more than anyone I know.”

“Okay, well then explain to me what the hell gripe water is.”

Danny pulls a face awkwardly.

“See? You can’t.”

The omega rolls his eyes, bringing up his hand to gesture vaguely; “I don't know, Steven, but it’s obviously for when pups… gripe.”

Steve raises his brows and stares at him. “Gripe.”

Danny looks away evasively. “You heard me.”

Steve shakes his head. “Yeah well, you know what? You gripe on a daily basis and no one’s ever suggested I use this magical water on you, so I doubt it's effective.” Steve mutters.

“It’s not fucking gypsy tears, you putz, it's baby medicine.”

The alpha crosses his arms. “Yeah, well, whatever, Danny. My point is that we need to baby proof this place, and I don't even know where to start. Joe and my mom are coming over in a day or so.”

The omega pulls the covers tighter at the thought of three alphas walking around his den.

Steve must smell his unease, even through the blanket. “Hey. Babe, no. We’re all gonna wear masking deodorant. And I gave my mom a lesson on omega ethics.”

Danny sighs, but nods, trusting him.

“And,” he hears Steve hesitate, “I told Chin and told him we’re gonna work from home this week.”

He says it like he’s poking a grizzly bear, hesitantly tensing and waiting for the inevitable reaction.

Danny, surprisingly, agrees with a groan of resignation. “My feet are starting to hurt too much to wear dress shoes anyway.”

A beat passes between them and it's like Danny can feel Steve realizing that Danny may not return to the office until after the pups are born.

He catches Steve’s scent, paternal, proud and comforting, as he leans in close to kiss Danny's temple. “You’re in the home stretch, babe.”

Danny yawns lazily in reply, and Steve leans in to nuzzle the apex of the omega’s belly with his nose and mouth. Pressing gentle kisses over the skin, Steve surprises Danny by starting to lick the skin in short flat stripes.

He winces at the ticklish sensation. “Babe, what the--”

But Steve places a huge hand on his chest, holding him down. “Just lay back. I can't help it,” he replies, chuckling against the skin softly, “I just need to do this.”

His mate is soaking Danny’s skin with the alpha pheromones in his saliva -- to let other Alphas know the pups are McGarrett pups, so Danny lays back and lets himself be doted on, knowing Steve is going to sulk around like a big cat if he pushes him off.

**xxxxxxxxxx**

“Hey babe, we’re still on the news,” Danny yells out.

Steve, putting away groceries, pauses and walks over to glance at the large flat screen in the living room. They keep playing clips of the interview over and over, and it crosses his mind that his mother has probably watched the entire thing by now.

It figures that she still wouldn't call, even after learning that they’d lost one of the babies. That would be too normal for Doris, too mom-like. He rolls his eyes with a fatigued sigh and turns back to the groceries.

“Steven?” Danny calls out a second time, and he sounds unsettled suddenly. “Steven.”

The alpha frowns because he swears he smells the onset of some intense distress, and, quickly tossing an artichoke into the produce drawer, Steve sprints into the living room.

He thinks Danny’s going to say something’s wrong with the pups, but his mate is fine, still settled on the couch under the fan that’s on so high of a setting that it looks like it's about to fucking take off.

But then he notices the folder in Danny’s hand.

The one Steve hid under the couch cushions months ago and forgot about.

The one that contains the lab results and the graphic photos of the mangled pups, revealing that all of the victims had been omega’s and that most of them had been pregnant.

Danny is staring furiously at him, eyes red rimmed and dangerous. “So this thing was poking me in the back, and I reach around and find this. Dated from way before the second murder,” he says calmly, but his eyes betray how livid he is.

The omega twists his neck, taking a second to breathe and Steve recognizes that tic from right before Danny shot someone in the head once. He looks around to make sure there aren’t any guns within reach and fuck he’s been glaring a hole into Steve this whole time.

“You hid this from me,” he says slowly, darkly, and manages to pull himself to his feet. “You fucking hid one of the most important pieces of evidence about this entire case from me. Your detective. Your partner. You let me research this case for months with a fucking blindfold over both eyes you son of a bitch!” He takes a step closer and jabs Steve in the chest with a clawed finger. “Did it occur to you that this case could have been solved by now if you’d told your DETECTIVE what we were really dealing with?!”

“Danny, I…” Steve’s mouth opens and closes, but words are so far out of the reach of his mind and all the alpha half of his brain can think of is to roll over and show his belly because fuck fuck fuck fuck.

“I can't believe you! Jesus Christ, we’re partners Steven!” He screams, eyes steaming and Steve swallows thickly, feeling a lump creeping up the back of his throat.

“Danny, I didn't want you to know, because I didn't want you to know that this is why you’re one of the only ones left on the island. I didn't want you to -- to be scared, or see what happened to the omegas’ pups. I didn't want my pregnant omega to have to see that, and be fixated on fucking photos like that when we’re waiting for our own pups to arrive. I didn't think it’d be healthy to stress you out that much…”

“Healthy? What are you a fucking doctor now, Steven?!” he snarls. “This job _is_ death. This job _is_ despair. And this job is nothing but photos like that all fucking day long!”

Steven throws up his hands. “Then why do you even do it, Danny, if it’s that bad?!”

Danny lunges forward, shoving him back into the door frame harshly. “Because you made it worth it, you idiot! Because I fell in love with you on day one, and I had never been able to love someone who would have my back like I had theirs. Because you needed me -- not financially, not just because you thought I was handsome, not because you didn't have your own life, but because you needed me. Because everyone you ever loved had fucking shot you in the back.”

Steve stares at him, jaw set because he’s biting so hard on the inside of his cheek trying not to let his eyes water that he tastes the coppery tang of his own blood.

Danny’s shoulders fall. “But this, Steven…” He shakes his head. “I trusted you. Maybe not to be open with your emotions because, after meeting your mother, I can see why that’s difficult for you, but at least to be open about our cases. Because we were a team. And we were the best. And that was part of why I loved being your mate.”

The alpha brings up a shaking hand and runs it back over his head. He can't think of a single thing to say. “Danny,” he says softly, and his voice breaks. “Loved?” He can't bring himself to ask why Danny’s using past tense.

Danny stares hard at him, blue eyes cold and saturated with hatred, and turns shaking his head. He walks out of the living room and shoves open the front door so violently that the door slams against the house as he walks out, rattling the window.

“What the -- Danny, where are you going?" Steve barks.

"Out," Danny mutters darkly as he steps off the front porch and storms across the driveway to his car.

"Danny!" Steve yells, walking out of the door after him, but the omega is already in the Camaro. When he approaches the car, the small detective hisses and bares his fangs, causing Steve to stop dead in his tracks.

In a few seconds the omega is peeling out of the parking lot too quickly, speeding down the road with the engine roaring.

Watching the Camaro disappear under the afternoon sun, Steve feels his alpha composure completely unraveling in the back of his mind, pacing uneasily and compelling him to follow his unruly pregnant omega.

To dominate him, show him who's in control here, and drag him and his two unborn pups back to his side, under his arm, and keep him there. Where they're all safe.

The idea is certainly an alluring fantasy.

Steve's fangs pop in his mouth as he turns back to walk away from the driveway that he's been standing at the edge of. He keeps walking, clenching his fists at his side, and decides he needs a fucking drink.

**xxxxxxxx**

When his phone rings, he desperately wrenches it out of his pocket, thinking it’s Danny.

But he doesn't recognize the government number.

"McGarrett," he says sternly, trying to hide the fact that everything between his ribs is slowly shattering and splitting apart.

A man's voice answers. "Mr. McGarrett--"

"Lieutenant Commander McGarrett," he corrects bitterly, putting his feet up on his desk.

"Excuse me. Commander McGarrett," he says flatly. "This is Logan Landsfort, president of The Hawaiian Registry for Endangered Subgender Humans."

"And why exactly are you calling me, Logan Landsfort?" Steve says darkly, and it's all he can do not to add you son of a bitch onto the tail end of that.

"I'm calling to discuss your options," the voice I replies casually.

"No, there is only one option here, and it's that Daniel and our pups are exempt from your research rights."

The man has the audacity to laugh cavalierly on the phone. "Commander, your hostility toward a program meant to solve the question of why less and less omegas are accounted for in the census every year is unexpected. I would think that you'd want to ensure that Danny doesn't meet an early end."

It sounds like a threat and the hair on Steve's neck bristles as the horrible thought unsettles his nerves. The phone creaks under the force of his hand. "What are you saying?"

"As a product of his own biology, Commander," the voice says slowly. "The birth surgery is dangerous for a male omega, and, like other mutated species such as the English bulldog for example, male omegas can't give birth naturally because of their narrow hip structure..."

"We're aware of that," Steve snaps.

"Then are you also aware that most doctors are not trained in caesarian surgery on a male? It's not as though Danny's kind are walking into hospitals anymore."

Steve thinks briefly back to Dr. Alexei Taylor, Max's friend and an unregistered omega. Surely he would know something about the surgery .

"I've been looking into making arrangements," Steve replies evasively, not wanting Alexei to lose his license for having seen (and not reporting) Danny before he was registered.

"Are you so sure you can handle this without the Registry's trained physicians?" The man's voice pauses. "After all, I'd hate for you to be unable to reach your own doctor in Danny's greatest moment of need."

Steve holds the phone away from his face in horror. He hasn't been able to reach Alexei since the morning of the trial. Since the day THRESH was informed that Danny is carrying. The phone goes straight to voicemail every single time.

He slides the end call button quickly, and feels his hand itching to throw the fucking phone across the room.

Huffing out a long breath of dread, he facetimes Chin instead, greeting him quickly. "I need you to look up a name in the system."

Chin nods at the tablet camera and pulls up the database on the tech table screen. "What name?"

Steve crosses his arms, staring intently at the camera’s angle of the tech screen and he can feel sweat beading on his face and neck now. "Last name Taylor, first name Alexei; A-L-E-X-E-I."

Chin dutifully searches the records until a few photos pop up.

Steve reaches out a finger to point briefly; "There. There at the bottom right. That's him."

"This is his medical license for the state of Hawaii, looks like he has nothing untoward on his record and --"

The beta pauses, going still for a moment. He leans toward the speaker on the tablet,  lowering his voice; "Reported missing a little over a month ago."

"Damnit!" Steve roars, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

  
Chin leans into view of the camera, shooting him a concerned look. Steve meets his eyes and tries not to look as stressed as he feels.

"What's going on, boss?”

Steve debates not telling him.

Seriously debates it.

But he shuts his eyes, calmly takes a breath. "Dr. Alexei was Danny’s sort of… Unofficial omega doctor. THRESH's president hinted that he... Knew about it."

Chin’s eyes widen at the camera, and his voice lowers. "Are you saying that this isn't a coincidence?"

Staring at him for a beat, Steve places his hands on his hips. "I'm saying I'm reading between the lines here, Chin, and I don't like what I see."

“I’ll see what I can find on the disappearance.” Chin says, and Steve thanks him, exiting the call.

**xxxxxxxxxxx**

Six hours and three beers later, Steve tells himself that he doesn't feel a lump in his throat and a tightness in his chest at the fact that he has no idea where his pregnant mate is.

When HPD had tried to put a tracker in Danny’s second Camaro (Steve may have totaled the first one), he had stubbornly refused, insisting that Five-0 wasn't HPD, and, therefore, Steve didn't have to comply with technical regulations on his personal vehicle.

The thought brings up an idea suddenly, and he calls Joe White’s extension at the base.

"Hello?"

"How do I access the GPS coordinates for the injectable micro-tracking device?"

His southern drawl sounds amused. "McGarrett, has anyone ever told you that you have a very delicate finesse with small talk? Because you don't, so if anyone did, they lie like a rug. And what device?"

Steve tries to hide his frustration. "The GPS tracker. The one that you added in with the order of security equipment a few weeks ago -- the cameras and locks and stuff. I injected Danny with it, and now I need to find him."

Joe is silent for a long minute. "Steve, son, I don't know what to tell ya -- I didn't _put_ a tracking device in any of those boxes."

 

  **XXXXXXXXXXXX**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun DUNNNN. Comments really make my day so please let me know whatcha think! :D


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I have this editor and she's amazing. I was sick this past week and I consequently tried to cut this update in, like, half. But she was like "No, no. Write more." So thank Bankroll1001 for not letting me cop out and the fact that you're reading more than a paragraph.

  
**XXXXXXXXX**

 

The alpha freezes. "What?"

"Yeah, alright alright. Hold on. I've got the invoice pulled up here on my private server," Joe says quietly, and Steve can hear the bustling office background at the base. "McGarrett, I’m staring at the order I placed for you, and there isn't a tracking device on the inventory list."

"Then who the hell put it in the box? And more importantly, who has access to it!?" He roars deafeningly loud into the phone and suddenly the world feels like fire around him, edging closer. “Joe, I -- I need…”

He can't breathe. He feels the alpha brain taking over, and he tries to fight it, but it's like a fog -- the primal distortion fills the voids of his thoughts, overtaking his rational will. He feels reason and logic drifting away in the haze and growls.

"Steven?" Joe's voice says suddenly. "It sounds like you're going feral on me here, are you alright?"

"I need... Now... Find Danny," he manages to slur into his phone.

"Steve, listen to me, don't do this by yourself. Go to five-0 and get help finding him. Let's do this the right way," he warns. And Steve nods dumbly, as if Joe can hear it.

  
**XXXXXXXXX**

When he bursts through the doors of the Five-0 department, Jerry, Kono, and Chin are all staring wide eyed at him like he's a lion that's just walked out of its cage.

"Boss?" Chin says slowly.

"My mate. Search all traffic cams. Find him," he growls, feeling anxiety crashing up against the rocky coast of his usually confident ego. His pregnant, vulnerable mate is somewhere, without Steve, and a serial killer -- one who specifically hunts omegas -- is still on the loose, while a complete stranger has access to Danny's exact location at all times.

He reaches up to grab at the sides of his head, seething in frustration at the fact that he hid the facts from his mate for so long.

"He's not picking up his phone, boss," Kono says lowly. "What's the plan?"

"Find my omega," he mutters through his fangs, and he storms through the office toward the tactical gear room, ripping down his vest and holsters.

"Steve what's going on?" Chin asks him in a hushed tone, following him into the room. "Danny probably just needs time to cool off! Is that what this is about?!"

Steve turns and growls at him, and it's only then that the beta can see that Steve is almost shaking and his eyes are starting to glisten and redden. Chin's lips part in surprise.

"Danny's in danger isn't he," Chin says softly, and Steve nods with a low whine, looking away.

  
“Situation turned critical today,” he says gruffly. “Danny’s being targeted by someone and he has no idea. He’s out by himself.”

"Alright boss, I'll get the team ready and put out an APB on him."

  
**XXXXXXXX**

Danny is halfway across the island, crushing his foot onto the Camaro’s gas pedal with punishing amount of force on a straight shot highway. He's reached the unfamiliar. The light is fading but his fury at this fucking situation is blindingly resilient.

He's had the urge three times just to grab one of the sniper guns, camp outside of THRESH headquarters, and later ditch the gun in the ocean. Maybe they wouldn't ever figure it out it was him, and it'd be a nice way to pay them back for the few stray reporters her finds outside of the house. The news reps still linger in the dusk like stray cats, calling out to him relentlessly with their troop of cameras when either Steve or he takes the trash out on  Thursday nights.

He hadn't seen any tonight, luckily. The temperature gauge on the Camaro has been steadily climbing toward overheating with the speeds Danny's taking this thing at, but, so help him God, he finally feels in control of at least one thing in his life.

He thinks back to the time when everyone thought he was a beta. Nothing alive was shoving around in his stomach twenty-four seven. He didn't get heartburn just from looking at food. Steve was controlling, but in a less panicked way. He could have a few beers while he watched the game, and could play football with HPD down in the park every Saturday.

Now he's wrapped up in this twisted serial killer case that's full of dead ends, confined with red tape, stuck incubating Steven McGarrett's litter of pups and nesting. 

Most unsettling of all is that Steven no longer feels the need to be honest with him at work. As a result, Danny is already having to backtrack. He's mentally sifting through everything he's learned about the case so far, looking at the facts through the new lense of the lab results he'd haplessly pulled out of the couch.

Would Steve have ever told him that all of the victims had been omegas? That most of them had been carrying? 

Danny worry a the inside of his lip. Did his alpha think Danny just couldn't handle the thought?

He sighs heavily, resting a hand on his rounding abdomen. "I love you little guys," he mutters quietly glancing down, "I do. I swear to God I do. But I'm over this whole carrying thing. Christ, I'm just -- I can't sit by while my whole world runs off the tracks."

The further he gets from Steve, he feels it like a stinging sensation in the back of his mind; it means his omega brain is getting uneasy about being so far from his mate's territory but fuck that. He can make his own decisions without these fucking pansy instincts. He jumps when one of his babies nudges outward in response to the growing anxiety he's trying to ignore. He holds the spot, trying to soothe the little thing.

He's still glancing down when the entire car jolts suddenly, and a loud bang startles him into gripping the wheel with both hands. "What in the--"

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees the rubber of the back left tire stripping off of the wheel just before the entire car begins to spin out of control.

He puts one hand over his stomach and tries to steer into the spin, trying to remember how to safely regain control over the vehicle. But all he can think about is how the last thing he said to Steve was out of anger.

  
**XXXXXXXXX**

Steve reaches for the radio in his truck in the parking lot after meeting with his team. He stares for a moment at the slight quiver in his fingers before he clenches his hand into a fist, flexing it again. "C'mon, McGarrett."

He yanks the radio off the dash, holding the talk switch.

"Attention all available units. This is McGarrett, Five-0. APB out on Officer Danny Williams, Black Camaro, plates Romeo Kilo Echo eight three two zero," he pauses, repeating the plate numbers, and hesitates. "Detective Williams... Is my bonded omega. I'm sure that some of you are already aware that Detective Williams is carrying. He's over eight months along with my litter, and he does not know that he..." He swallows thickly. "He may be in critical danger. Now, I understand that I cannot legally ask every single unit to tend to a missing persons case. But Danny is one of our own, and he's … Well, he's my own. And I need help getting him and our pups to a secure location."

His voice almost breaks on the last word, but he would willingly take shrapnel to his chest before he showed that much weakness over the police channel.

It takes a minute. His precarious nerves endure one full minute before the responses start filling the channel.

_> > Copy that Unit 8 out and searching._

_> > Unit 9 here, copy Papabear, joining the search._

_> > This is unit 7, McGarrett, copy that, leaving HQ to search._

_> > Units 6 and 4 here; we'll find him, McGarrett._

He takes a long slow breath. "Copy that," he says finally, and responses are still coming in.

_> > Unit three here, was on a call. Suspect in the back seat says he's a friend of yours -- name is Sang Min?_

Steve's lips turn up in a faint smile despite the torment his Alpha brain is suffering. "Sang Min? Less like a friend, more like a bad rash that won’t go away. What does he want?"

>> " _Copy McGarrett. Suspect wants me to tell you ‘we'll find your babymama, McGruff’"_

Steve huffs a laugh. "Unit 3, copy. When you bring Sang Min in, make sure you probe his anal cavity for weapons and contraband extra thoroughly."

There's a grin in Unit 3's voice when he replies ' _copy that_ ,' and Steve can hear Sang Min swearing at him in the background.

  
**XXXXXXXXX**

Danny vaguely registers that he's being lifted, but the world is a grey haze that he can't fully decipher. Something warm is dripping down his face and arm and his neck -- he neck hurts the worst.

He smells smoke.

Catches a flash of a uniform.

EMT's.

"He's waking up!"

Danny frowns, cracking open an eye as he starts to swat weakly at the hands touching him. "What... How..."

"Sir, sir can you tell me your name?"

"D-Danny," he coughs, and then there are lights in his eyes and he hisses.

"Easy Danny, you're okay -- he's being protective, he could be a nesting alpha."

"He does have fangs," Murmurs a steady voice.

"I haven't dealt with too many, but I'm pretty sure alphas don't hiss," answers another voice and someone is dabbing rubbing alcohol on his arm; it burns his sensitive nose.

"No, I'm...'Mega..." Danny slurs. "Omega."

"Woah, hey, I think he just said he's an omega. Danny? Stay with us Danny, you've lost a lot of blood, try to stay awake..."

There's a buzz of talking, and Danny drifts in and out for a few seconds, only catching the most important part when they cut open his tee-shirt. "-- But look at his stomach, it's distended. Christ he almost... Does he look pregnant to you?"

He eyes the needle poised above his skin and he starts at that, realizing that they might be about to inject him with morphine or something similar not safe for his condition. "Yeah, I am -- Yes," Danny tries to sit up but he's met with excruciating pain in his sides. "Arrgh! Fuck!"

The lights are back in his face. "Sir, lay still -- don't try to get up, you've broken some ribs. Are you saying you're currently pregnant?"

Danny nods, taking a few pained breaths, and reaching down to hold his stomach with both hands protectively. The two EMT's look at each other.

"Explains the hissing," one says quickly.

Danny reaches up a hand, seeing his claws glinting in the harsh lights of the ambulance, and tries to reach out to grab the arm of one of the medics. "What happened? Where's my Alpha? Are my pups... My pups okay?" He tries to sit up again to look down at his belly, to make sure there's no discoloration, and he whines at the pain in his ribs.

A hand gently presses him back down on the bed. "We're gonna check the babies right now, okay? This is a fetal heart monitor." There's a pause around him and he struggles to keep his eyes open as someone starts to attach a strap to his belly. "You were in a car accident, Danny. Do you remember anything?"

Danny shakes his head, rubbing at his stomach nervously. He can feel a little movement inside but not as strong as usual.

"Your car hit a telephone pole. We were gonna take you in an ambulance, but my partner is calling in a helicopter to life flight you because of your pregnancy -- the pups are a bit stressed."

Danny nods, clenching his eyes shut as people hover and around him, it's making him anxious.

  
After a moment his primitive side starts to come to the surface; he twists his neck in submission, praying that they'll help his pups and whines out inhumanly. For a second, the EMT's freeze like they're surprised by the sound, but soon one of them rubs the hair back from his forehead trying to soothe him, and another grabs his clawed hand.

The last fleeting thought he has is that he stormed out of the house without his phone, so he can't call Steve.

That, and the fact that his pups are barely moving.

He grips the hand tight, hearing the deep hum of the helicopter's blades coming closer.

  
**XXXXXXXXX**

>> _Unit six to McGarrett_

Steve reaches out to grab the receiver. "McGarrett here, go ahead unit six."

>> _Got a report of an accident across the island on the coastal highway coming down the mountain. Black Camaro, plates matching Danny's vehicle. Driver responsive. EMT's on the scene; waiting for a helicopter to Honolulu Hope Springs Hospital because of the afternoon traffic on the mountain._

  
“Jesus fucking Christ,” Steve's fangs pop in his mouth and he whines, managing to stifle it for a second to reply. "McGarrett heading to the scene."

>> _Copy. Hang in there, McGarrett._

  
**XXXXXXXXX**

Danny wakes up again as the EMT’s are strapping him onto the stretcher bed in the helicopter. There’s another woman in a crisp dark blue uniform leaning over him, tersely muttering things to the pilot through her headset. Her hat has a life flight emblem on it.

“Oh Jesus,” Danny breathes, feeling the copter take flight in a jarring swinging motion. He puts his hands over his stomach, more for his own security than the pups’.

It's a longer flight than he's expected, and his ears somehow become used to the deafening roar of the engine and rotary blades. He tries to yell something up at the woman, to ask her why they haven't reached Honolulu yet if it was only just over the mountain, but she motions that she can’t hear him.

Pressing his head back against the mattress and clenching his eyes shut, Danny doesn't see the needle approaching his arm and it catches him off guard. Hissing in protest, Danny flicks his eyes up at the technician’s void expression.

“You gonna’ tell me what that was?” Danny snaps, knowing that it’s futile to yell, but she tightens his oxygen mask over his face anyway. He pulls away, scrunching up his nose and mouth under the uncomfortable mask pressing into his face. This one has a tight rubber strap with a buckle.

Almost like a muzzle.

He finally can't take it, having bad memories from his time at THRESH, and reaches up to loosen the thing. Suddenly, he finds himself uncoordinated in the movement of his hands and fingertips. His hands paw blindly at the straps, fumbling numbly at the buckle as it slips through his fingers again and again. “What...what did you give me?”

The woman firmly grasps his wrists, setting them down at his sides and he feels his heart rate quicken as the interior of the helicopter starts to spin around him and he prays it isn't actually barreling around in the air like that.

Instead, he focuses on the logo on her hat. Crisp and new, matching her uniform.

But something bugs Danny about that. Why is it new? Shouldn’t she be a seasoned technician? Maybe she went up or down a size. But why would the hat also be new??

Unless it wasn't a real uniform.

His claws unsheath in his fingertips and the woman glances down, looking at his frightened eyes for a second, but her gaze is blank and uncaring, and she watches as the feverish effects of the drug claim him.

She pulls out a stethoscope, pressing the cold flat piece to his swollen belly and sliding it around, and he grimaces uncomfortably, watching her listen to his pups.

He wants to ask if they’re okay, but he knows she wouldn't hear him.

And then Danny notices, to his gradually ascending horror, that a huge tranquilizer dart gun is mounted near the ceiling. It’s salient in the fact that a life-flight helicopter would not need such extreme defensive measures against a patient -- especially not one that’s hurt badly enough to warrant a life flight in the first place.

“Who… What is this?” Danny whines to himself under the mask, tearing at the face straps feebly with his claws, but she turns quickly to tighten restraints on his wrists.

He feels himself start to howl out involuntarily as he struggles, knowing that something is definitely, definitely wrong, but the noise dies in his throat as he fades into a dark, drugged sleep.

  
**XXXXXXXXX**

Steve's truck barrels over the mountain and down into the highway, sirens and lights on. He can imagine Danny trying to fuel his rage into aggressively whipping the Camaro over this deserted road before the accident, and the thought makes him growl at himself for hiding the case facts from his partner, for setting Danny off like this.

He wants to get down on his hands and knees --fucking beg and grovel for forgiveness if it means he can wrap his arms around his mate and nuzzle into his neck and never let go. He wants to curl around the pups and breathe softly against that warm, tightly stretched golden skin until he knows for certain that his litter is safe and healthy and that he hasn't inadvertently set into motion something that harmed his own children.

Jesus _fuck_.

The thought makes his heart clench painfully in his chest, seizing with the ice cold realization that he has no idea what seat belts or airbags would do to a pregnant person in an accident.

He sees the white life flight helicopter lifting into the air just as he leaves a heavily forested area. “No, no, no,” Steve snarls, flooring the gas and hoping to accost the EMT’s with questions before they leave the scene.

He gets up a slight incline and turns around the slope of the mountain and there it is: the beastly wreckage of the Camaro, spun out into a tilted telephone pole.

That sight, he knows, is going to haunt him, but he ignores the thought, trying to focus on ‘the mission’ he’s mapping out in his head. He’s compartmentalizing the shit out of this situation to avoid a full on breakdown, and, suddenly, his mother doesn't seem so crazy for how she acts in a crisis.

Steve jams on the brakes and switches the truck into park before throwing himself out of the blue Silverado and stalking up to the ambulance techs, determined enough with his focused glare to scare the hell out of both betas.

“My mate, Danny. How bad was it?” He pants, and they’re staring at something -- with this look -- oh. His fangs are popped. He slams a hand onto to side of the ambulance to snap them out of it. “Answer me damnit!” He roars.

“Danny was r-responsive,” the woman says holding up her hands submissively. She reeks of the sour scent of fear.

“The pups?” He breathes, looking between them both.

“The fetal heartbeat was strong,” the man begins slowly, like he’s talking Steve down, and Steve snarls at that because he can't help it at this point -- the alpha in him needs to be in control of this situation. “The babies were just --” he pauses.

Steve bares his fangs.

“Stressed!” The woman blurts. “They were stressed.”

Steve turns away, running a hand over his mouth anxiously. “How dangerous is that -- for pups to be stressed?” He says it without even turning back around to look at them.

“It’s not too bad,” the woman says softly, “but it almost always triggers early labor if it doesn't stop.”

Whipping his head around to stare at her frightened eyes, He realizes that something in his expression must be betraying how terrified he is himself because she looks sympathetic suddenly and steps forward to put a hand on his shoulder.

The man is staring at his partner like she’s just decided to pet a fucking shark, and the thought passes through his mind that yeah, he has been an alphadren fueled asshole. These people had had no way to contact him, hadn’t known he was on the way, and they did help his mate. Waiting for her to speak, Steve clenches his jaw.

“He’s going to Honolulu Hope Springs Hospital -- maternity ward. They’re trying to find a doctor right now that can do the surgery, if needed.” She pulls her hand back slowly and he sighs, nodding.

“Thank you,” he mutters gruffly turning silently to storm back to his truck with half shaking hands. He texts Chin the coordinates, watching the EMT’s leave, and sighs, staring at the Camarro.

The alpha reaches for the radio. “All units, McGarrett here. Danny is being flown to the hospital, and I’m leaving to meet him. Thank you, everyone, for your help tonight. Over.”

_> >Copy that, McGarrett. Hoping for a soon recovery for Danny._

_> >Copy, unit 8 here, any time McGarrett._

_> >Copy that, I’ll send Danny some daisies._

Steve smiles sadly, revving his truck engine to life.

“If you can find some kind of flower made out of bacon or pizza that might go over better.”

The officers try to cheer him up, trading barbs as he starts the drive to the hospital, knowing that he’ll have to put on a strong face for his mate.

  
**XXXXXXXXX**

Unbeknownst to McGarrett, only a few minutes later, a life flight helicopter is hovering over the coordinates of the crash.

The pilot, Jake, who had been refueling at the hospital after a long day managing the flights with his tech, Carrie, when he answered the call, is perplexed.

There’s no ambulance, and apparently, an empty car. They land, still, out of an inherent sense of duty to any potential victim whose life may be precariously balanced on the line between critical and too-late.

His partner, Carrie steps out and runs, ducked down below the spinning blades, and shields her eyes from the rising gusts of sand. She quickly checks out the entire car.

“There’s definitely blood, but there's no pregnant omega here,” Carrie informs him, hopping back into the bird. They can both see the tire tracks from the ambulance and where it left, presumably with the victim.

Another call comes in, not too far away, and they look at each other in hesitation before deciding to take the call.

“I've got someone in need versus someone who isn't even here,” Jake sighs. “I know which one to spend minutes on.”

Carrie nods, radioing in that they’re refueled and in the area, and are picking up. It’s a stroke victim -- every second counts -- and together they're going to save another life.

But the eerie empty scene of the accident is still in the back of their minds, and Carrie picks up the radio again to explain to HHS hospital that there was no pick-up at this last call, and to try to figure out what had happened.

After all, if there was anything slightly amiss with the transport of a pregnant omega, then the hospital would inevitably have its alpha on their hands to deal with. A nesting alpha -- the most dangerous kind of alpha -- that could go feral over any bad news involving his unborn pups.

  
**XXXXXXXXX**  

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finals are coming up for my summer classes, so it might be a while. I'll try my best to be speedy about an update afterwards. 
> 
> Give me a shout out if you like the story! Your comments = my fiction fuel :D


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait' y'all! This is such a tiny update, but I didn't want another week to pass by without a new post.

  
xxxxxxxx

By the time Danny has realized that the helicopter isn't flying anywhere near the hospital, he's sedated, in restraints, and knows that Steve isn't even aware that any thing's wrong yet.

Still, using his thumb claw, he's able to twist his hand enough to knick away at the leather cuffs they have on him. When he throws himself off the table, he's tangled in IV tubes and monitors straps that he rips off his body like they're venomous snakes.

"Jesus Christ -- he's loose!" The woman grabs at him from behind, pulling him up from under his arms as he claws toward the back of the helicopter.

"Loose? What do you mean _loose_? There's like 8 square feet of space back there Shea Lin, I have a feeling he's probably not gonna get very far."

He's so drugged up at this point he luckily can't feel his ribs throbbing with pain, but, when he turns to bare his teeth at this fucking Amazon woman, it looks like there are three of her.

"Aww, MaMa Bear; you look so confused," she laughs at the expression on his face, and turns on her com link to the pilot. "Hey, you know -- he's still pretty frisky," her low voice mutters. 

Danny tries to kick out at her kneecaps in response, but it feels like he's trying to run underwater.

Her face twitches as she clenches her jaw, glaring down at him.

"I told you we should've brought more sedatives, as soon as they told us this one was a male, I told you we should have brought a few extra acepromazines," the pilot retorts, and Danny starts to realize how deep this plan runs.

"Whars didyou givert mergh?" He slurs, feeling his mouth grow numb by the second.

She reaches for the back of his neck suddenly, but he snarls viciously, covering it with one hand, and presses himself against the wall.

"Look at you, you are something _else_ ," she huffs in annoyance. "You look like you swallowed a beachball, and you _still_ think you can fight."

She grins and Danny slashes out at that fucking smile -- all three of them -- and manages to at least cut something because he smells blood.

But she takes a utility knife off of her hip and shoves it against his stomach, and he finally goes dead quiet. His entire body stiffens in a frigid moment of panic.

"That's what I thought," she hisses between clenched teeth.

"Hey, take it easy back there, Shea Lin," the pilot's voice says over her intercom loudly. "Boss isn't gonna be happy if you cut this one up before we get there; said this one's special or something, right?"

"Yeah well, Mama Bear's pretty pissed off back here," she mutters. "Just got me across the nose with his claws."

The pilot laughs, "We're almost there -- little ones are always the worst, aren't they? I feel like they always give us the most grief."

The woman, Shea Lin, stands up and locks eyes with him as he all but cowers, disoriented against the back corner of the helicopter. "One more stunt like that, omega, and I'm going to stab you in your scent gland and send you into a seizure."

"Just let him be, Shea, not like he can really do much, pregnant as he is," the pilot mutters over the mic, not bothering to glance back.

Danny slowly feels himself falling onto his side, and he watches the woman from across the helicopter, holding his hands over his stomach protectively as s series of cramps starts up in his lower back.

He starts to sweat suddenly and he presses his face against the cool metal of the floor, clenches his eyes shut. The cramps are getting worse, and the pain is strangling his breathing into short raspy breaths.

When he feels movement near him, he flicks his eyes open, baring his teeth, and the woman is staring at him.

She's giving him almost an appraising stare. "Looks like he's cramping up a bit, but it's hard to tell with the males."

Danny whines out involuntarily as the cramping starts to spread across his distended middle. "F-fuck..." He clenches his teeth after a beat, and finally it lets off. In relief, Danny sighs out against the floor of the bird, glancing up helplessly at the fucking woman.

He wants to know what the hell was in that injection.

"Yeah he's definitely in pre-labor," Shea Li says disinterestedly, like she's announcing something as mundane as the weather. But she frowns. "This is progressing quicker than I intended."

 _I can't be in labor_ Danny furrows his brow, feeling at his own stomach. _Labor doesn't happen this quickly.._. But then the cramps start up again, this time making him yell out.

"Well, see, you stressed him out," the pilot retorts flatly.

"He stressed himself out," Shea Lin snaps, crossing her arms and pacing above him as he grunts in pain. "No way I'm taking the fall for this one."

The pilot sighs over the mic. "Well fine, but you're telling the boss, Shea, 'cause I sure as hell ain't doing it."

  
Danny is about to snarl something at them when suddenly feels as if someone is stabbing him with a dull blade along his lower belly, and twisting the knife over and over. He absolutely yelps out, baring his fangs as he grits his teeth.

"Did he just cry out for his mate? That's so sad," the pilot chuckles over the mic, and the woman smirks as Danny looks up at them in horror, unaware he's even said anything, but the pain seizes upon him again. The sensation drags every single one of his nerves from his ribs to his hips into an incinerating agony that reminds him of the time he got shivved twice in the gut in an undercover in a maximum security prison.

The surgeon confronted him after the surgery that day. The doctor had been more than a little surprised to find his womb -- barely missed by the the makeshift prison blade -- when he had opened the omega up to stitch up his small intestine. Danny, who had been on blockers so long that even he had almost believed he was actually a Beta like his license claimed, had stared at the man like he'd grown a second head. It was like had forgotten what the blockers and the deodorant were for. The only other people that knew were his family, and they never brought this up. Ever. Not once.

When the compassionate surgeon had told him he would have to report Danny to the Jersey registry of Omegas per protocol of the A.M.A., he said he would give the secret omega a month before submitting a a report.

Hence his sudden move across the world, as far from Jersey as he could get.

A hand on his stomach startles him out of his feverish haze of memories and he kicks out, slurring threats and hissing. He starts to hallucinate at one point, and through the pain in his gut and the acid trip around him, he vaguely registers that he's on a stretcher, being wheeled down a hall.

Lights are blazing blue-white in the ceiling, casting everyone above him as silhouettes in his field of view as he lay there in agony, writhing and panting. "Where... Where are you -- arghh-- t-aking me?!”

**xxxxxxxxx**

Steve paces down the hall in the obstetrics ward at HHS hospital, back and forth, and back, and forth again. His alpha self is growling and whining under his skin, and he can almost feel an imaginary tail flicking uneasily as his predatory eyes scan the wing repeatedly.

It's almost 7:00 pm.

He turns sharply to his team, who are draped over chairs in the waiting room. "It's been almost two and a half hours."

His lead beta stands. "Steve, I'm sure he's about to --"

"No," the alpha snaps loudly, rounding on Chin. "This isn't normal, something's wrong here and I'm tired of being told to calm down." His green eyes are wild and his perfect white teeth are tipped with the barest hints of fangs at the corners.

The beta looks over his shoulder where two security guards -- the only ones on the entire floor -- are conveniently twenty feet from the SEAL, trying to pretend like they're not watching the nervous Alpha's every move.

Chin reaches up to put a soothing hand on Steve's shoulder, trying to fulfil his role as the levelheaded Beta, but this situation may be beyond his ability to help. "Steve, is it possible that he was taken to a different hospital?"

The alpha brings up two hands to cradle to sides of his head, trying to focus on his beta's gentle voice. "Start calling other hospitals then," he says quickly. "It shouldn't be too hard to figure out... There aren't that many omegas left on the island." _Especially with someone murdering them and dismembering the bodies._

As soon as the thought creeps across his mind, a foreboding darkness starts to resonate in the back of his thoughts. The tracking device in Danny's arm could have lead Danny straight into trouble, or, well, lead trouble straight to Danny. Could someone have _taken_ Danny? He's Five-0, and someone would have to be a goddamn idiot to try and kidnap an officer of all people.

 

Unless they wanted an omega that badly.

Esoecialy one one that had been on the news. And he clenches his jaw, because _Jesus, Steven, stop overreacting._

Chin is diligently phoning every major medical facility within fifty miles, and meets his eyes, probably curious why he's suddenly ashen and pale but Kono has been unnerved since she heard the news.

She would never suggest it to him -- wouldn't want to set him off -- but she's probably thinking the same thing.

Their efforts to keep Danny out of thresh had inadvertently broadcast his subgender to the world, making Danny a possible target to anything waiting patiently in the shadows. Obviously, his mind jumped to thresh. 

But it would be too obvious to take Danny back to the facility, and it would be the first place HPD checked if Danny were reported missing. 

The second place they would look for Danny would be where ever he had been seen last...

Without an explanation to his team, Steve darts down the hall, hearing the shuffle of the guards tailing him. He bursts into a stairwell, spiraling three steps at a time to reach the roof.

The betas call out his name, trying to follow, but they can't keep up.

**xxxxxxxxx**

  
When Kono sees Steve disappear into the stairwell, she knows exactly where he's headed and scrambles after him, "Steve, wait!"

By the time she bursts through the warm metal door to the humid air on the roof, all she can see is a blur of arms and legs flailing in the pale glow of the helicopter platform lights. The air is noxious with the unmistakeable scent of diesel fuel and engine grease.

Through the dull him and buzz of the city, with a few howling sirens of the near by ambulance port on the street below, she hears the tell tale snarls of a feral alpha and witnesses her boss lunge on a civilian.

"Shit!" She rushes forward, diving onto the pile of scuffling men and regrets not bringing her bulletproof vest and padding. She gets her toned but small arms around Steve's shoulders and locks her hands, effectively draped over his back. "Boss, no!"

"Get him off of me!" Screams a man's voice over the snarling, but it isn't until Chin, the strongest beta Kono has ever known, starts to pull the alpha back that the guy can scrape himself to his feet.

  
"The fuck is his problem!?" The man sputters, and Kono finally realizes that he's a wearing some kind of uniform with a pair of aviator sunglasses tucked into his front shirt. He's covered in a few red medical crosses -- one on his chest and one each on his sleeves-- and he obviously works here.

While Chin -- and the bewildered security guards -- hold back the enraged feral alpha, Kono briefly considers apologizing to the man but whips her badge out of her back pocket instead. Steve may have been on to something. "Freeze! Five-0!"

The man's eyes widen as he looks from the badge to the snarling alpha. "What're you gonna arrest me?! Arrest him! He just attacked me! I'm just up here refueling for my next call!"

"You're the LifeFlight pilot?" Kono lowers her badge and places a hand on her hip.

The man nods, trying to straighten out his uniform as he glances wearily over at Steve. "Yeah, and I'm allowed to be up here!"

"My mate!" Steve snarls back at him impatiently, lurching forward, and the guy visibly flinches. Kono steps in front of him, blocking the pilot from Steve's view and snapping to get his attention.

"Where's the omega?" She demands.

The guy looks puzzled.

"The pregnant omega -- he was life flighted from the scene of an accident, and he never arrived in the E.R., meaning you were the last person to see him!"

The guy throws his hands up; "There was no one in the car! The scene was empty. No EMT's, no nothing. My tech can vouch for that!"

Kono stares at the man, trying to read his eyes. Unfortunately, the only man that can actually smell of this guy is telling the truth is currently trying to bite her cousin in the arm.

"You're coming in for questioning," she blurts nervously, trying to sound authoritative despite the debacle taking place behind her; the pilot looks half focused on her words so she shoves him hard in the shoulder, getting his attention finally. "Find a replacement for your shift and head in or I'll have HPD bring you in in a patrol car."

With that, she leaves the pilot bewildered and swearing into the night air, and looks to Chin for direction as he wrestles with Steve to keep him contained on their way back to the stairwell.

"He's not gonna be in the best state of mind as the night goes on. We need to get him away from people," Chin mutters, shoving the door open with his foot.

"Should we take him back to his nest?" She asks, cautiously grabbing and holding the door open for her cousin and boss. One of the guards chuckles at the word _nest_ until Steve lunges out and snaps his fanged teeth near the guy's neck.

"Christ!" The guy shouts, dodging out of the way with a hand on his mace, and he almost falls down the open stairwell. Chin glares at the guard.

"Stand back before I have to check you in at the hospital you're supposed to be working at," Chin warns lowly. "You clearly don't know anything about alphas." The guard pales, nodding. Her cousin then pauses, turning to gesture with his eyes to the phone on his hip. "Look in my phone for Joe White's number."

  
**xxxxxxxx**

  
After Chin explains the situation, Joe stops by HPD on his way up to headquarters, and shows up with a pair of zip ties and a small vial. He gets Jerry and Chin and Cath to hold Steve down while he smears something from the vial around his nose, mouth, and neck, and the alpha suddenly slumps over, looking around the room in a daze.

Everyone stares, astonished at the substance's effectiveness, while Joe just holds up the vile knowingly. "It's E.O.S."

"Is that from the evidence locker?" Chin frowns at the mention of the ecstasy-like drug. "We just confiscated sixty five ounces of that stuff last weekend."

"Well, now you have sixty four bottles," Joe mutters under his breath, tucking the drug into his pocket. "It's the best sedative I've ever found for a feral alpha and when I told the men at HPD guarding the locker that McGarrett had gone feral, they agreed to simultaneously take a coffee break without their key. Reminds me of something we used to use in Vietnam on the alpha soldiers to incapacitate them."

"Is it an opiate?" Cath mumbles, looking at Steve's blown pupils as he stares back. "He's high as a kite."

"It's synthetic omegadren," Chin explains, crossing his arms. "Since there's no actual omegas around anymore, teen alphas have started using it to take the edge off -- according to Max and the guys at the lab."

"Looks like it takes more than just the edge off," Kono mutters. "Looks like it takes off all of the edges and most of the middle, too."

"This was one of the strongest batches we've seen," Chin retorts, glancing down at Steve sympathetically. "Which is good, because he's going to need it until we find Danny."

Cath hovers by Kono nervously, and the female alpha finally announces that she's going to start interrogating the pilot.

"I'll go call the EMT's to come in, too," Kono sighs, following her out of the room. She steals a lingering glance at her boss as Joe helps him stagger to Danny's office and frowns.

"I think his mate's scent might calm him down a bit," Joe calls out, then pauses. "Or enrage him into another fit of primal fury, but I guess we'll find out, won't we. Somebody go get me more zip ties."

  
**xxxxxxxxxx**

  
Danny regains consciousness to the agonizing pressure of a migraine and or the worst hangover he's ever felt since college.

He can't help groaning, reaching for Steve desperately with one clawed hand, but his arm hits a cement wall.

Flicking open his eyes, Danny regrets it because of the sheer brightness of the room accosting his sensitive eyes. It gives his migraine the incentive to punish his brain further for it and he winces, staring into the back of his wrist for a few minutes. After a while, he's able to take in the strange room around him as the pain eases off, and he scrambles clumsily to his feet in alarm.

The floor is some kind of vinyl foam pad under his bare feet and the walls are cement, unpainted and cold. The front wall is sold, thick looking glass, like a fucking zoo enclosure, and he runs to the only door in he room, in the cement wall.

"No, no, no, no," Danny breathes rattling the locked door knob. He looks into the lock, knowing that he'll need something long and thin to wedge in there and another to flip he key tabs inside the lock. He looks around, holding a hand on the underside of his belly nervously. 

There's a bed with white sheets against the wall and an exposed toilet and a shower stall, as well as a small sink. One single pendant lamp harshly casts tall shadows around the room.

He yanks the bookshelf off of the ground and throws it into the cement wall, busting it apart.

Standing on the bed, he chucks the piece of wood at the pendant lamp and shatters the hot bulb, raining bits of glass down on him. Jumping awkwardly from the bed -- and he shouldn't but he has to -- he grabs the pendant light and means to land relatively gracefully on his feet... But falls to the floor in a heap, forgetting his shifted center of gravity.

His bruised ribs flare up in excruciating pain as he twists to fall in a way that's safer on his stomach. For a brief moment, Danny wishes more than anything that his huge, strong, protective alpha male was here, even if it was just to tell him to 'slow the hell down and take it easy' but he has to get out. He's not losing another pup to separation from his mate.

The detective successfully yanks the pendant light out of the ceiling and feels triumphant with his potential wealth of new things to pick the lock with, but it's a fleeting glory. The muscles in his stomach and lower back twist again and he gasps out for a second, gritting his teeth at the blindingly sharp pain that accosts him in the now dark cell.

He's distressed, now, for sure, if waking up in this fucked up cell wasn't enough to set him off initially, and Dannyremembers from the fiasco with Doris that he's gotten contractions from stress before. Either that, the omega thinks, or something was in that injection the woman have him on the stretcher.

And how long ago was that? He has no way to gauge the passage of time without a window.

Taking slow measured breaths, Danny holds his stomach and winces. He decides panting sort of helps, and looks around in the darkness.

Danny starts pulling wires out of the pendant lamp, pulls out the filament, unscrews the metal cap to get at some of the metal stripping around the insulation.

He's turns to the locked door, panting now with a sheen of sweat on his skin, but a contraction starts to set in.

Picking locks, however, is Jersey detective 101.

"C'mon, c'mon," he breathes, but the room is slowly filling with his distress from the pain.

The lock pops loudly, unlocking, and he throws himself through the door into a corridor, walking as fast as he can down the harshly lit hall.

He reaches a stretch of panels of glass as far as he can see and suddenly -- "Arrghhhhhhuh!"

He snarls out in pain, eyes widening at the intense feeling of his abdominal muscles are twisting and throbbing at once. Someone in a beige set of scrubs darts around a corner freezing at the sight of him, and they lock eyes. Danny honestly doesn't know who looks more surprised that he's apparently having strong contractions, but the guy jabs a red button on his radio unit and sets something into effect.

An alarm blares loudly, and he can't help but hiss at the shock of it to his sensitive ears.

There's a sting in the back of his shoulder -- presumably from a dart -- but fuck if he's going to make it easy for whoever the hell these people are. He starts to run, as fast as possible considering his bruised ribs and his pup-heavy stomach, and makes it past the point where the walls turn into windows.

But they aren't windows to the outside world.

They're windows to enclosures; dimly lit, barren, grey cells, housing figures with lonesome haunting eyes.

The eyes stare back at him, grey visions of his desolate future in the place; they are fatigued of their desperation for freedom which still grips its talons into Danny.

 _But one day it won't,_ the eyes say to him.

_One day you'll sit, like us, and watch what we see in you -- your spirit, your fight -- fade away through the glass._

To Danny's horror, one of them is locking eyes with him, watching blankly and unfazed, as two men grab him by the arms and inject something into his neck that makes him lull forward, limp in their arms until everything is black once again.

**xxxxxxx**

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! A double update weekend woop woop! And an extra special thank you to my awesome beta, Bankroll1001!
> 
> Be warned! Angsty.

* * *

 

Steve wakes to the sight of Joe White perched on his desk.

But it isn't his desk.

It’s Danny’s desk.

He stares hard at the unkempt mess of papers, silently breathing in the scent of his mate as the day’s events rush back to him. “How long was I out?”

His hands are tied with zip ties.

“Long enough to freak the shit out of your team,” Joe mutters. “See?” He pulls open the blinds without even turning around to show at least three of his betas hovering nervously, staring into the office. “Feel like a goldfish yet? I always do.”

Steve shakes his head, regretting it as a crick in his neck pops loudly from sleeping on the desk papers.

“Got a paper clip on your face there, son,” Joe mumbles quietly and Steve peels it off, sighing.

“Does my mom know Danny’s missing?” He asks, voice hoarse from growling and snarling earlier.

Folding his hands in his laps, Joe nods quietly. “Says she’s ready to help in anyway that she can.”

“Tell her to stay at the house in case anyone turns up.” With that, Steve tries to stand, but finds his ankles zip-tied to the desk, and he nearly busts his teeth on the desk. “The hell is this for, Joe?” He snaps, looking down at his feet. “You know any alpha is strong enough to break these!”

Joe just starts to huff a low laugh to himself and Steve flexes his inhumanly strong muscles and pops the ties off. “More for my own amusement, really; I was kind of hoping you’d actually fall.”

The alpha glares at him in annoyance. “Is there any way you can trace that tracker in Danny’s arm, Joe?”

Joe's face softens sympathetically; “No. Not without the identification number of the GPS itself to track it.” He’s silent for a long beat. “Who do you think could have taken him? THRESH?”

“That's the first place I’m gonna look -- but if they had taken him, they would have known I’d come looking.” Chewing the inside of his lip, Steve glances down at the mess of papers. “Look at all of this -- there are so many leads to that fucking case that if -- if the serial killer had wanted him… As some kind of prize….”

Joe shifts uneasily on the desk. “Because his picture was on the news every night for a week?”

The younger alpha nods. “Exactly. But what I’m saying is that if that is the case -- we’re nowhere near solving it. Which means we’re nowhere near finding Danny.” He puts his head in his hands.

“I guess you just have to solve the case then, big guy,” Joe says quietly. “But you’re not alone in this, you know that. You’ve got the finest team and the sharpest lab techs in the state right here in this office. And you’ve solved harder cases than this!”

“Yeah, well, it’s personal now.” Steve leans back against Danny’s chair, feeling an ache in his bones that he’s pretty sure has nothing to do with how he slept hunched over a desk, and starts to gather all of the notes he can find on the case.

 

 

* * *

 

Danny’s shirt is cut open and he's shivering in the cold, sterile air as they rush him down a hall. He tries to slash out with his claws but he's too drugged to coordinate his movements.

When someone speaks in a fatigued voice above him, however, the words are clear and salient against the hum of machines and fluorescent lights; "The boss says we have to take the pups out."

"No!" Danny howls in protest at the thought, startling all of the shadowed figures and a few swear in surprise when he strains against the straps on the gurney.

"And this is the one he picked for the procedure? Is he crazy? We've given him two sedatives and he's still conscious!"

"Just gas him before the pups get too stressed, I'm sure they already are, dammit, and if we lose one before it’s time then it's a waste!" The voice above him is low and commanding, and careful trained hands begin to swab the skin of his stomach.

  
"No! Get your fucking hands off me!" His omega brain alights in a fury and he snarls, struggling with the last of his strength to yell out to them.

"Your pups are being born today, omega, you should be happy," an accented voice chuckles, patting his shoulder. "At least for now."

Danny stares up in horror, baring his teeth, and tries to lunge at the figure, but there are hands holding him down.

When the muzzle on his face is replaced with a clear, rubbery mask, a rush of sweet smelling air, Danny twists his face back, and realizes that he can see down the hall of this strange place.

A figure, walking closer, is getting briefed by someone with a clipboard. As they get closer and closer, their two faces come into view.

Danny gasps out, stunned.

He recognizes one of the men.

 

* * *

 

Steve bursts into the doors at THRESH, ignoring four nurses that follow him down almost every single hallway. Logan Landsfort himself appears from an elevator and watches him silently searching and scenting the air. 

A security guard puts a hand on his shoulder and Steve twists the man's arm so harshly that he hears joints pop and strain, and he alpha leaves him in a heap on the shining floor as he continues to tear through the facility.

He has Danny's notes on the case waiting on his desk, not to mention multiple leads to follow up on, but Steve knows he won't be able to rest until he knows for sure that THRESH has nothing to do with it. 

But there's no scent of Danny here. Not a trace. 

Steve and Chin call HPD in that night to check the facility more thoroughly, to interview and press the nurses for information as Logan Landsfort looks on with steely, unphased eyes.

The man's expression is blank, but vaguely smug, as if he somehow knew this was coming -- m even though he has only just been informed (with copious confidentiality agreements) that Danny is missing.

Still, Logan's forced, stony expression betrays him enough to make it clear that he's satisfied to see Steve's shoulders fall at the realization that he and thirty five trained HPD betas can't find evidence of Danny on any level of the facility.

He has the audacity to wish Steve the best of luck in finding Danny, and the Alpha turns to lock eyes with him, considering punching the man in the face despite the inevitable lawsuits that would follow.

 

* * *

 

When Danny is back in the blindingly white room. The shine of the fluorescent lights reflects off the white sheets and the white walls and floor.

More alarming than the fact that he still hasn't found a single clue as to where the hell he is, is the fact that he feels something that he hasn't felt in a long time. He feels empty. Like part of him is missing.

He's on his side, wearing white scrub pants only under the sheets, and with a quivering, hand he slowly reaches -- still groggy from the drugs -- toward his stomach to check on the pups.

But the heartbeats Danny has been listening to obsessively for the last few months are gone, and his hand cuts through a void where the familiar and full curve of his belly once was.

He scrambles into a sitting position, and looks around, starting to breathe ragged deep heaving breaths. Searching along the walls with his eyes, he frantically catalogues everything in the room. But they're not in here.

  
The thing he registers with the most clarity after that, is the fact that his lower lip is trembling, and there's a yanking pull in the back of his throat before a terrible wailing sound fills the room. It takes him a moment to realize that the sound is coming from him.

 

* * *

 

That night, after the raid on THRESH, Steve collapses, defeated, in his office chair with a stale cup of coffee.

Eventually, Joe comes in as he's perusing one of Danny's folders of notes, and gives him a rough shake on the shoulder, trying to comfort him. He marks the top of the younger alpha's head subtley with the scent markers in his wrist (and, no, Steve doesn't miss the fatherly gesture).

"We knew he wasn't at THRESH," Joe says quietly. "We talked about that."

Steve nods and sighs, glancing out of his office toward his betas. Most of the team is still here, making phone calls, and trying to get a good sketch of a suspect from the two EMT's that Cath has interrogated. There's an open box of cinnamon coffee cake in the break room that served as a sorry dinner for most of his betas, and he can smell the sickeningly sweet scent of it from where he's sitting. He should have paid for them to order in; they've been working overtime to try and find their missing teammate and Steve can see it in the bags under their eyes. 

They have to solve the issue about the Butcher's DNA under the fingernails of one of the victims from the second ritual-like crime scene, the ritual that, according to Jerry, wasn't actually cohesive with any occult traits or methods he had been able to research. They have to solve the connection between an abandoned farm and an open field. They have to figure out if this was some kind of hate crime or a crime of passion. 

They have to solve this entire fucking case to find Danny, and each one of them are aware that they have been utterly and completely in over their heads since the start.

Joe shakes his shoulder again mutters something about how it will all be okay as he starts to walk out of the office. 

"Thank you, Joe," he says quietly, and they lock eyes briefly befor he turns back to the papers on the desk. One of Danny’s hastily scrawled notes has caught his attention, and when Steve's alone in the office again, he glances down to pick up the paper.

“ ** _LOOK INTO:  
Fingernail scrapings = affection, not aggression?”_**

Steve frowns at the writing, mulling the words over. “What were you onto, Danno?" He whispers out loud in the empty office with a sigh, and starts to read over the lab result the note is written on. 

And then, suddenly, he's setting down his coffee and leaning in close. _How had he not thought of this before?_

 

* * *

 

  
Danny blinks and feels the primal simplicity of his feral brain receding back into the darkness of his omega brain. ‘How long have I been feral,’ he thinks, flicking his eyes about the sterile cell.

There are vicious gashes in the paint of the cement walls and his mattress and sheets are shredded.

In his arms is the only thing in the room that he hasn't shredded; a pillow. But he isn't just holding the pillow, he realizes, he's cradling it.

As if it were a pup.

A long beat passes before Danny is able to gently set the pillow down, and he turns his brow into his hand to take a wavering breath.

He sleeps in a dreamless void, clutching the pillow, and wakes every few hours in the darkness from the pain of the incision.

 

* * *

 

Steve pulls up at the retirement home the next morning, folder in his hand. When he walks into the building, the stench of ancient beta is hard to miss. He smells mothballs and regret, and it almost singes his nostrils.

A cheerful nurse in pink scrubs appears in front of him instantly, glancing fowl suddenly at his muscled biceps and blushes, leaning closer than Steve is comfortable with.

“Can I help you, sir?” She hums approvingly, and it's obvious she hasn't been close to anyone under the age of seventy for at least a few days.

Steve ducks his head. “I’m here to see Richard Hekelea. I’m with Five-0.” He has to mentally stop himself before blurting out ‘the butcher’ instead.

 

* * *

   
Danny's sitting on his floor against the wall when the door opens, and he can hear the tiny mewling cries before he sees who's coming in the door.

Looking up in weary trepidation at allowing himself to hope that they have actually brought him his pups, Danny is stunned to see two nurses in the doorway. They're each holding one tiny, tiny pup. Each is no bigger than the size of Danny's hand.

He feels his fangs and claws popping as he stares at these women holding his babies, HIS babies, how dare they even TOUCH them, and his chest is heaving suddenly in relief and torturous anticipation. His eyes start to water, but he can't care to be embarrassed as he springs up toward them desperately. "Please," he breathes, already grabbing for them and their sweet scent is everything he's ever needed in life in two tiny packages. The center of his universe, with a gravitational pull just as consuming, is here finally before him, satisfying a primal, basal need. Even touching them is embarrassingly soothing to his core existence as an omega, and they smell like a combination of Steve, and Danny himself, but also sunshine, and morning crisp air, and the golden aroma of sun warmed honey.

He doesn't even notice the two women standing there anymore as he lets out a pathetic sounding noise, moving his arms to cradle the tiny babies against his chest.

  
He's surprised at first that they didn't give Danny a bottle for each, but, with a grim realization, the omega notices that even the feeling of his babies' mouths rooting hungrily around his pecs is stimulating a biological response.

The pups start to smell the suddenly leaking fluid and it's like they go insane, instantly. They both let out two tiny, hungry, yowling growls, and Danny fumbles them awkwardly against him until they're somewhat in position. They each aggressively latch onto him and he inhales a slow, hitched breath of fear and bewilderment at the fact that his body knows how to do something he cannot even begin to mentally handle or explain.

Danny has trouble watching when they feed for the first hour. He just clutches them close, trying not to think too much into it as he settles on the floor behind his bed to hide away from the view of the nurses at the glass. He keeps a pillow in his lap to feed both at once, one settled almost under each arm and palms cradling their tiny heads against him and he hates how much he loves it.

Sometimes he drifts off to sleep with them, imagining he's in the shade of the breezy hammock trees in Steve's backyard, rocking gently and listening to the surf.

But when he wakes again, the nurses are flashing the lights and buzzing a faint, vibrating alarm on the wall to wake him up. If he doesn't hand them over after each feeding -- one hour four times a day and once at two AM -- then they set off a high pitched alarm that's painful to him and terrifying to his pups.

The first time he tries not handing the pups back, they aren't brought in for three days afterward, being fed some sort of formula supplement instead. Besides spiraling into a depression so bad that he tries to hurt himself with part of a bed spring, Danny is in pain from the pressure that builds up in his chest and doesn't try to attack the nurses anymore.

His pecs are not too noticeably different than they had been before the pregnancy, but by the third day of the punishing separation, his pecs ache and throb until he can only lay flat on his back, finding even the wilting graze of a sheet over his chest excruciating. It gets so bad that he tries to express the stuff from his chest with his hands in the shower, thinking about the pups and trying to imagine their hungry little yowls as he knuckles the flesh until the white, thin fluid leaks down and curls around the shower drain. His omega brain hisses wasteful in the back of his mind, and even the smell itself makes him miss his pups.

Oddly enough, he even misses being pregnant. He will look down sometimes at the two tiny babies in his arms and misses carrying them around in his womb, feeling their movements, their hiccups, and their naps deep down in the bottom of his belly. He mostly just misses knowing they were safe in there, and the fact that no one could take them from him.

As the bond sickness starts to set in, though nowhere as bad as when he was carrying, Dany feels himself growing fatigued and fading from his former resilient self.

Now he sits down to feed them, out of fear of dropping them with his weakening hands. He gazes down into their kitten blue eyes as they nurse and marvels at the fact that they have no idea how terrifying this is for Danny. They have no idea that this isn't their real home. That they could be killed any moment after serving whatever secret purpose they’re being kept alive for.

Danny tries not to let them smell his fear every time the lights begin to flash above him, wondering if he'll ever see his pups again, and wondering if they’ll still be alive long enough for Steve to rescue them.

 

* * *

 

On the fourth day that Danny has been missing, five AM finds him hunched over black coffee at the kitchen table, poring over his notes.

Danny, it turns out, had been dead on about the butcher’s DNA under the fingernails. The entire team had been approaching the tissue under the fingernails as evidence of an attack, simply because that’s usually what evidence of that kind indicated. But there had been another possibility that no one had considered -- no one but Danny.

He had slowly pushed the photograph of the woman from Danny’s notes toward Hekelea, and the old man had gone eerie still, like a statue. Steve had known Danny was right about the DNA under the nails before he had walked in, but he had had to verify it for himself. He imagines that Danny had been about to pursue this lead himself, but had been wrapped up in the media’s break on their story.

The young woman in the photograph was from the 1950s; an omega named Annie Teller, who had gone by a handful of aliases in her career working the streets. The lab had kept dismissing the hit on her prints from the second crime scene as a miss-hit in the system, an error, because a young looking hand clearly belonged to a woman no older than twenty five and the woman in the system was at least seventy five by now.

The hand had not been embalmed, and had been free of wrinkles, age spots, and solar radiation damage -- so prevalent in the sun-drenched state of Hawaii -- but had also been free of tissue damage from moisture found in a freezer unit.

If this hit in the system belonged to Hekelea’s long lost omega, then it meant someone was preserving these bodies in a much more technologically ingenuitive way that even their advanced lab couldn't begin to comprehend.

The old man’s piercing alpha eyes had fixated on the photo like he was seeing a ghost before him, drawing him slowly into another era right there at the table in front of Steve.

“Is this her?” Steve had finally asked in a quiet tone, to which the old man had nodded and cleared his throat. It sounded as if he were trying to suppress the welling emotions out of his voice as he finally spoke.

“That's her. That's Annie.”

“She was in the system for a prior conviction,” Steve said softly. “Her hand was found in the second crime scene, preserved. It means that the tissue was preserved in deep cryogenic freezing for over fifty years.”

The man shook his head, eyes becoming glassy. “And my DNA was under her fingernails? You thought I had killed her because of that?”

Steve leans back, crossing her arms. “The system had her as a missing person -- last seen, like you said, at a church retreat.” He pauses. “Without the rest of Annie’s remains, it’ll be impossible to clear you as a suspect until we find the lab that did this, but I know there are multiple ways your skin cells could have ended up under her nails…”

He trails off, giving Hekelea a pointed look. The old man almost blushes -- almost -- before a sad smile appears on his face. “Omegas definitely do like to scratch. ‘Specially in the heat of the moment.”

A long beat of silence passes between the two men.

“She had gotten picked up by the police before, she’d told me. Probably why she even came up in the system in the first place.” The old man looked away. “Walking the streets. She was no saint and neither were the bozo men in our town, ya know? No one could resist an omega like her. Had half the guys jumpin’ outta their skin with the change fightin’ over her, but that was when alphas could do things like that. Don’t see that anymore.”

Steve frowns. “Don't see what anymore?”

He turned to lock eyes with Steve. “The change.”

“You mean a feral episode,” Steve says awkwardly, being all too familiar with the concept. The man shakes his head cryptically, though, and stares down at his hands, leaving Steve to wonder what the hell he’s talking about.

The man looks up angrily from his hands and flicks his eyes toward the window evasively. “Don't tell me what I mean. I mean the change that takes over you -- consumes you like a fire and burns you through and through. Makes you into something more than yourself,” he says in his raspy voice, finally locking eyes with the younger alpha. “It almost happened to me, when they tried to tell me Annie had left. I knew she was dead. That’s why I’m not a goddamn mess right here at this table -- I made my peace with her death in my own way.”

Steve shuffles through the papers, trying to read Danny’s notes on the Butcher and suddenly loses his appetite, not that he was planning on eating in this little cafeteria anyway, but it's a strange thing for an alpha to not always be ravenous. “You mean the… Church of New Dawn? That was why you … did what you did. With the bodies.”

The man’s face darkens at the words and one of the older women walking past their table in the sleepy little cafeteria gives them an alarmed look before shuffling off. Hekelea watches her with lingering eye, disapproving her eavesdropping apparently. “They took Annie for a retreat to…” He pauses, fanning his wrinkled hands out. “To find God. Her and her best friend Cherise Margot. Gah that girl was a loon. They were both in the business. Now, I told most of this to that little omega, where is he?”

Steve tries to hide the sinking sensation that unhinges something in his chest, and he clears his throat. “He’s ah…”

“He didn't have his pups yet did he?” Hekelea interrupts, “I saw him on the evening news about two weeks ago. I swear that was him.”

Steve stares at the man, wondering if he was aware that Steve had been on the news with Danny, and that they were actually mates. He decides to sidestep the matter altogether, not wanting any details about their current situation to get to the media. If the reporters from two weeks ago got wind that Danny was now missing, he would have the case and a media circus on his hands, and he was stretched emotionally thin enough without his omega safe in his den. “Detective Williams is taking a leave of absence from work.”

“Huh,” the old man hums in response, eyeing him carefully, and Steve can feel that this guy can see straight through him.

“Mr. Hekelea,” he begins again, trying to steer the conversation. “Back to Annie. You’re saying that the church was the last place you knew Annie had visited?”

“Like I said,” the old man snaps as a nurse sets a plate of grayish mush in front of him with a wobbling square of green jello. “Her and her friend Cherise Margo, both ladies of ‘the oldest profession,’ if you will, got brainwashed by that damn group and I know those church folk are the ones that did it. I just know it!”

He slaps a hand down onto the table and the jello trembles accordingly, the movement catching Steve’s eye as the younger alpha considers his words. It would be extremely unlikely that a church group in the 1950s had access to anything able to preserve tissue like what the lab had deemed necessary for Annie’s hand to actually belong to the Annie from half a century ago.

But it was something to go on, at least, and Danny had been right so far.

“I’ll keep you updated,” Steve says finally, sighing as he rises to his feet. He can feel the cloudy eyes of at least four elderly beta females drifting over him longingly, and he rolls his shoulders awkwardly to avoid visibly shuddering.

“I hope your omega hasn't disappeared and found God, too,” the old man says cryptically. “Didn't go so well for Annie, as you can see…”

Steve frowns and turns to glance at the old man, but he’s turned his attention to the green jello, chasing an elusive glob of it around the plate with his plastic spoon, and the younger alpha shakes his head. Danny had been able to get the most information out of Hekelea, and it would be so much easier with his little blonde firecracker of a mate tucked under his arm like he always was. Trying to solve a case without him, for the first time in years, was proving to be more difficult than Steve had imagined.

As he gets to his truck, he pulls out his phone with a sigh and texts Joe.

 _**[To: Joe White]** _ _**What would an elderly man be referring to if he mentioned an alpha getting ‘the change?’** _

_**[To: Steve M] Beats me. I haven't ever heard of anything like that, but I’m from Texas, son, not Hawaii. Ask a local maybe.** _

 

* * *

 

Walking quickly into the busy hum of headquarters, Steve walks straight to Jerry’s office. He catches the man halfway into taking a large bite out of footlong sub sandwich and the man pauses awkwardly, mid-bite.

“Yeff?” He asks around the sandwich. He looks almost afraid; considering the last time Steve was separated from Danny he had turned into a feral beast, the alpha isn't surprised that the beta is suddenly tense. But the E.O.S. is somehow staving off the worst affects of bond sickness.

Steve leans forward and slaps a paper down onto his desk with bold Sharpie writing on it.

"- ** _CHURCH OF NEW DAWN_  
** -HAWAII 1950s  
-ANNIE TELLER  & CHERISE MARGO  
(Both omegas/prostitutes)"

“Research this lead, will you Jerry? I’m going across the island with Kono to interview some landowners.”

The man nods, still holding the sandwich, and the action costs the large beta a few salami slices which fall haphazardly onto his desk calendar.

 

* * *

  
Later that night, just as the crickets are beginning their familiar hymnals in the warm night air, Steve pulls his truck into his driveway. After a few exhausted steps toward the house, the alpha paws blindly at the key rack just inside the side door. His coordination is going.

It's one of the first signs of bond sickness, despite the vial of E.O.S. in his pocket that he’s been smearing on his neck twice a day.

“Any luck today?” His mother says nervously, and Steve nods quietly on his way upstairs to his nest.

“A few leads,” he calls out, but his voice betrays how he actually feels.

As soon as he’s in the dimly lit room that still smells of Danny and the Pups, the scent overflows his carefully compartmentalized fear that he won’t see his mate again. The thought stabs deep into his heart now, away from the eyes of his team, and he feels his eyes sting as he picks up the pillow from Danny’s side of the bed to inhale into it slowly.

 _Fuck_.

He imagines his mate laying down against him when Steve settles into bed that night, and clenches his hand at the thought that his palm would be over the pups, rubbing them gently through Danny’s skin, letting them know that he’s there and he loves them.

Outside of the door, with a plate of leftover pasta she’d fixed for her grown son, Doris McGarrett hears her son crying for the first time since he was a boy, calling out in an inhuman sounding whine under his breath for his lost mate and pups.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *sobs* I know! I know. But I believe in happy endings, I promise. 
> 
> And the case is finally picking up! I hope the switching around wasn't TOO hard to follow in this chapter. im trying to tie this all up as neatly as possible and it's about as easy as hugging a cactus.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on a roll y'all! Spending my summer break typing away and trying to finish this fic by the time school starts up! So a huge thank you to the First Mate of the SS ABO, my beta Bankroll1001. If anyone ever sees an error, it's because I went back at the last second and meddled with stuff post editing.

* * *

  
Steve is in the office when Kono walks in half an hour before she's supposed to clock in. It was especially hot today, so she's wearing a navy blue cotton tank top and her hair is up in a pony tail. She had wanted to wear sandals, but open toed shoes on the job were never a good idea, so she had opted for her usual grey cargo pants and black Doc Martin boots.

The alpha is standing at the tech table, but instead of using the screen to navigate the database, he's got papers spread out over the glassy surface and a hand on his hip as he stares down at the papers.

"What's all this?" Kono asks quietly, coming up to stand beside him.  
He almost jumps in surprise, which is never a good sign. Kono knows that Steve can usually hear her coming from half a football field away.

"I've got the records for the old farm, three listings of property around it up for sale, and the same thing across the other side of the island. I've got a few lots up for sale," he pauses, "We need to find out how these sites were chosen."

Kono leans in close to look at the properties up for sale; "Damn, these prices are low."

Steve snorts; "they'd have to be with what took place down the road."

"Yeah, the Corpse-a-paloozas," Kono mutters and the alpha pauses to give her a look. "Not funny, sorry. But you're right. I bet no one will buy a single one of them now, considering the bodies being found so close by."

Steve picks up one of the listings, "A low price might tempt someone, someone not superstitious. Especially a low price for land with a view like that, it's a must have."

"What do you mean?" Kono frowns, she doesn't know the area well, save for driving around to research leads.

Steve points on the map. "There's a nature reserve here in the center of the island. Gorgeous jungle -- it's completely untouched land."

Kono furrows her brow. "Then I'm surprised these families are so quick to give up their homes out of fear."

Steve sighs, shifting through the papers before he locks eyes with her. "Love, money, revenge, and fear," he says lowly. "Those are the four things that people usually do crazy things for. Remember that."

"Hmm," Kono hums to herself in thought, glancing down once more at the gorgeous homes and their ridiculously low prices.

"I need to see Marvin Northamer again," Steve mumbles, staring down at the deed of sale from the farm. "I need more information out of him."

The beta pauses, going still. "Isn't that the father of the guy that sexually assaulted Danny?"

  
Steve pulls a face. "Well, this time I don't have everything I care about wrapped up in one compact little big mouthed, complaining package to bring along with me door to door. I didn't have any issues with Marvin. He was a nice guy."

"Old farmer, right?" Kono says, picking up some of the scans of the deed of sale.

"Was a farmer until the soil supposedly turned 'sour' on him, whatever that means," Steve reaches for the deed in Kono's hands. "And then the land was bought by the state because no wanted a useless farm."

  
"Well, why even tell a potential buyer that the soil's ruined? Not exactly something you want to advertise," Kono retorts curiously, but the alpha shakes his head.

"Marketable use doctrine," he explains, flicking his eyes up. "Can't contract to sell something knowing it can't be used for its main purpose; that's a misrepresentation and a breach of the implied warranties in the deed."

"So he was totally legally fucked," Kono surmises, raising her brows, "That's what you're basically telling me. And so Mr. --" she pauses to read the deed over Steve's shoulder, "Mr. Arthur Grimly steps up to buy up the land on behalf of the state in 1953."

"Exactly," Steve explains, opening his mouth to continue talking, when he catches a scent. "I can smell Jerry coming down the hall; I had asked him to research something for me late last night."

The alpha walks over to stand by Jerry's office, holding a folder and a notebook tucked under his arm when the large jovial beta appears from around the corner.

He jumps at the sight of Steve, leaning languidly in the door frame like a black cat in his path. "Jesus boss-man," Jerry breathes, placing a hand over his heart, and Steve can hear it starting to calm down by the time he sits down.

"So?"

Jerry holds up a finger signaling him to wait as he flips through a messy stack of papers. "Okay. Annie Teller was..." He sifts through a few printouts of white computer paper. "Was..." And finally he has a profile print out. "She was a 'lady of the night' as you know, but she was also... An omega."

Steve raises his brows. "Both things I knew yesterday, Jerr."

He holds up a finger again, and really, what is with the fingers here?

"But did you know that after she got picked up by HPD eight times in 1952 she started trying to turn her life around?"

"And find God at the Church of New Dawn," Steve glances up at the ceiling. "Still something I already knew."

But Jerry continues. "But her new job, or at least her source of income, was paid research on omegas in 1953. Which is where she met Cherise Margo."

Steve frowns. "THRESH?" He moves so quickly that Jerry doesn't doesn't even see him move until he's suddenly right over his shoulder.

"No," Jerry says, picking up another paper. "This was through the United States Navy. THRESH hadn't even been created yet, because Omegas and Alphas were equal in the census and the omegas weren't endangered."

Steve picks up the paper, looking at the list of names, upon names, upon names of omegas. "Jerry where did you get this?"

The beta glances up at him coyly. "I know a guy who knows a guy."

The alpha shoots him a look.

"Alright, fine, the Navy museum. They let me take pictures of the log book. It was a huge research project."

"Did your friend say what the the Navy wanted with a bunch of omegas?" Steve says gruffly, starting to pick up more pages from Jerry's desk and tucking them into the folder in his hand.

The beta shrugs. "No, but a lot of Japanese American omegas ended up doing it because they couldn't get work elsewhere to help support their families." He holds up a picture of an attractive young Asian woman. "This is Cherise Margo. Also a former prostitute."

"Yeah Marvin Northamer told me he used to hire a lot of Japanese-American workers on his farm after WWII."

Steve pauses as a thought creaks across the floorboards of the back of his mind. "You said Annie Teller stopped working the streets in 1951, but didn't start the paid research until 1953, right?"

Jerry nods, carefully watching his face. He must be able to tell that the alpha is onto something.

"Well what did she do in 1952? What if she worked on Northamer Farm?" He looks down at Jerry and raises a hand to gesture at her black and white profile printout. "What if she's the connection?"

"Or just the fact that she was an omega." Jerry points down at the log book. "After 1953 there was a huge influx of research subjects."

Steve crosses his arms and takes for granted the fact that Jerry will follow him -- like a good beta -- when he darts out of the office toward the tech table. Sure enough, Jerry tags along behind him, following his lead. "What if there was an influx because the only other source of work was suddenly shut down?"

Jerry blinks up at him, "Makes sense to me boss."

Steve lays out the research log book scan next to the deed of sale for Northamer Farm. "In 1953, Northamer farm shuts down, and then, that same year, all of these names, and look, there are a lot of Japanese surnames on this list, all of these people -- omegas -- went from Northamer's farm to the navy research labs to be paid research subjects.

Jerry looks uneasy. "That could be a coincidence, though, couldn't it?" Kono walks up, carrying the fanciest break-room coffee that Steve has ever smelled (and, really, she must have a stash of creamer and whipped cream and cinnamon somewhere).

"What could be a coincidence?" She asks, carefully sipping her coffee around a mountain of whipped cream.

Steve leans over the desk on one hand and uses the other to jab at the two pages in question with his pointer finger. "The fact that this place, the farm, shut down, and suddenly the paid research is apparently the only place Japanese-Americans could get work after WWII, and that is exactly where one of the victims worked a year before she disappeared."

"What kind of research?" She frowns.

"Omega research," Steve and Jerry say in unison and Kono leans in close, her brows knitting together.

"Then I don't think it was a coincidence," she says slowly.

"Why?" Steve asks, and she extends a long graceful arm out to point at a signature at the bottom of the logbook with the total calculations:

**_Simon L. Landsfort._ **

  
"Holy _shit_ ," Jerry mutters. "You think that's Logan Landsfort's father?"

"Two different Landsforts in Hawaii doing omega research? That's too big of a coincidence for me," Steve mutters, collapsing back in a rolling chair to process this because _this_ , he thinks, _this_ changes things. He turns to Kono. "I need you to go find me the records of whatever the fuck was supposedly wrong with Northamer's soil, now. It would be with State testing through the department of Agriculture."

Steve runs a hand back over his hair. If the Navy had wanted test subjects, it seemed a little too convenient that Northamer's farm suddenly had to shut down and force all of the omegas to find work as research subjects. Because certainly anyone would prefer farm work to being poked and prodded in a lab...

"Jerry," he says, without looking up. "Call Nellie Darnell and tell her to find out everything she can on Simon and Logan Landsfort and fax it to me tonight. The department will pay her well for it."

"On it, boss," says the large beta.

"And where's Chin?" He yells out, hoping someone will answer.

"EOS raid at the university," little Lucy from the lab answers in her tiny voice, and Steve purses his lips. He was getting low on his supply.

But things were different on EOS, Steve noticed. His sense of smell was going haywire, and his hearing was almost too sharp.

He briefly remembers that bit about 'the change' and disappears quickly into his office, about to google whatever this "change" was and why it supposedly no longer happened to alphas.

  
But he's interrupted by the sound of Cath yelling, suddenly, and he lopes toward the break room to see what in the hell is the matter. But before he can reach the break room, Kono storms out of the break room door in front of him, almost in tears, and Cath -- standing by the coffee -- looks just as put out, red faced and steamy eyed.

Steve opens his mouth to ask her what just happened when she just shakes her head walking out in a different direction than Kono, leaving her coffee steaming by the Keurig machine.

Steve checks his watch.

It's only 8:27 AM.

"Women," he mumbles to himself, deciding to leave to research leads by himself.

________________________________________

By the end of the morning, around lunch, Steve comes in with six clear tubes of soil. Each one is a cylindrical section of dirt, three feet deep.

He had called the mouse-like lab technician, Lucy, out to meet him at the farm to help him dig up the samples in a controlled manner for further analysis in the lab. With a pair of bright yellow wellies and a blue lab windbreaker that absolutely dwarfed her, little Lucy had dutifully sampled each of the six crop fields per lab protocol, all the while looking suspiciously like Paddington Bear.

The alpha had stared on at the diligent little blue and yellow bear/mouse in mild amusement, marking the locations of each sample on the map of the property, and together they had carried the tubes back to Max before lunch. (Steve had actually only let Lucy carry one tube, while he carried the other five, as they were slightly heavy, purely so she could feel involved -- but she will never know that.)

When he walks out of the lab and into Max's office, Lucy is beaming, and Steve realizes with an odd sense of pride over his little beta that that had been her first solo field expedition.

Max says the soil tests will take a day or so to complete, and he leaves to start meticulously labeling the six long cylinders.

________________________________________

He had been able to keep it together that day, the alpha thinks as he drives home. He had done as well as could be expected, he tells himself. They had made enough progress on the case that he actually felt that he was getting closer to finding Danny, and he had kept up his professional alpha demeanor without letting the personal nature of the case cloud his judgement.

But Steve dreams that night, about Danny.

He dreams that he's just come home from work to find his omega writhing and whining on the bed, panting shallow hot breaths into the soft fabric of the pillow as he rocks forward on his hands and knees. _When he picks up Steve's strong alpha scent, Danny lets out a low whine, calling out for him desperately, needing to be fucked. The omega collapses his strong tan arms down to the mattress, but he keeps his hips up and presents his perfect ass by bending his chest low and spreading his knees wide on the bed to splay himself as wide open as possible. His hole tenses as he rocks slightly on his knees and it's pink and swollen and glistening with clear slick._

_He's pregnant in the dream, absolutely ripe and close to popping; and his hormones are at the root of this, a pseudo heat, as his round, belly full of their heavy pups hangs low toward the bed between his shapely tanned thighs._

_"You did this to me," Danny huffs into the pillows, digging his claws into the mattress topper and dragging them down to pull himself up the bed and his hole winks at the alpha, dribbling fresh slick down toward his perineum. "You... You fucking did this," he moans. "You put these pups in me and screwed over my hormones, now fuck me, please Jesus God for the love of everything holy, just hurry up and fuck me…”_

_Steve walks forward to run a cool hand over the omegas feverish, sweat glistening back and he purrs out loudly, leaning into the touch and letting out a shameless purr. "You know, I've been waiting all day for this, Danno," Steve murmurs softly, sweeping his hands over Danny's gorgeous ass before unbuckling his belt. "I could smell it on you this morning. The heat."_

_The alpha drapes his toned, muscular body heavy over his mate's back, pressing warm skin on skin and gripping the back of his neck tightly as he rocks his length between Danny's slick cheeks, just grazing over his hole._

_The omega gasps out, fangs glinting in the dim light, and Steve pulls back far enough to line up and enter Danny all at once, roughly slamming his hips against his mate's gorgeous ass. He digs his hands into Danny's hips now, pulling him back with his arms to slam into him as hard as possible, until Danny is shoved up and bumping the headboard of the bed with the force of Steve fucking him, and then -- only then -- does the omega sigh out in relief between thrusts._

_Keeping up his rhythm, the alpha continues to slam deep into his mate's slick, wet heat, every so often hitting his sensitive cervix and making him whine out plaintively for more. He obliges._

_Steve then twists them gently, careful of Danny's middle, until he's seated on the bed, propped up against a pillow, and he yanks Danny over to straddle his hips._

_The omega protests slightly at the break in the rhythm, and has his hands resting nervously over his heavy, round belly as Steve manhandles him, but he trusts his alpha with his life._

_As Danny straddles Steve's hips, biting his lip and tense from throbbing wantonly between his legs from the absence of Steve's cock in him, he digs his nails into the alpha's skin impatiently until Steve yanks him into position and slides back up into his slick channel, pulling Danny down forcefully to get deeper up inside him. The omega moans, exhaling slowly as his shoulders ease down into a relaxed slouch._

_Steve fucks up into him, roughly at first, then with just the tip of his thick length, quickly thrusting right against Danny's o-gland until the omega starts to shiver helplessly. Steve is relentless, forcing him to stay when he tries to squirm from the over-sensitivity when the alpha’s knot starts to swell._

_When Danny finally orgasms above him from the pressure, his quivering thighs give out and he almost collapses forward, gasping out, but Steve steadies him. He holds the suddenly sleepy omega up and marvels at his fertile, gravid body and how the pups have changed him while they grew, safe and warm inside him. Danny’s face is tipped back languidly, exposing his throat in post orgasmic bliss. Steve growls lowly, coming at the sight, and bucks up in one final thrust to spill his hot seed deep into Danny’s waiting body, eliciting a weak moan from the omega who tightens down on his knot to milk him dry._

_Steve safely lowers Danny against his chest to embrace him before gently rolling them both over, kissing up and down Danny's neck, and gently licking over his bond bite. They’re knotted still._

_The omega purrs again, tucking his head up under Steve's chin, and relaxes under Steve's comforting weight. The alpha holds him in a protective embrace, knowing that his strong willed, brilliant partner will be completely independent and stubborn as ever in the morning like he usually is, but savors the opportunity to hold him like this, even if it's only for just a moment._

_Danny turns to kiss him gently, parting his lips to say something and --_

Steve's alarm clock goes off at 4:45 AM, and suddenly, he’s alone in the nest again.

But he's painfully hard and he reaches out across a cold bed where his warm little omega was just laying beside him in the dream.

But Danny's really gone.

He remembers now, and fuck, it's a hard one-eighty to go through first thing in the morning.

The loneliness that falls around him in the silence is oppressing and consuming, and he rips himself out of bed to take a brutally cold shower. He still sees his mate's blissful smile when he shuts his eyes, and can hear the ghost of a purr as he silently fixes his coffee. The memories of the dream are torturous as he tries to shake them off.

His mother is still asleep in the old master bedroom, but Steven feels alone, even while hearing her heartbeat as he walks out to his car.

He misses the exit for headquarters, but just drives. He almost crosses the fucking island and drives until the sun is starting to heat up the black asphalt of the highway and people are calling him from the office out of concern. There are three voicemails from Cath, and he wonders if she's sorted out whatever drama she had with his beta, Kono, or if he's going to have to get involved.

Nellie Darnell of all people is sitting in his office chair when he walks in, wearing a blazer and a pencil skirt that he's pretty positive still has a Goodwill tag on it, and she hands him an everything bagel and cream cheese with a soft smile.

The alpha looks down at the bagel in surprise and is about to protest her spending money during this assignment.

"I got that with a buy one get one coupon from the newspaper, so technically it was free, before you say anything. And I know you're uh..." She pauses, taking in the sight of his bloodshot eyes, "Having a rough morning there. But I found out a lot of dirt on the Landsforts, and I think it's gonna cheer you up at least slightly."

Steve gives a faint smile and starts to head toward the tech table so Nellie can brief the team on whatever it is that she's found.

* * *

 


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta'd by my fantastic partner in crime, Bankroll1001 ;))

* * *

* * *

  
Danny is curled around his sleeping babies after their noon feeding, delicately trailing his fingers over their backs. They're wearing white matching onesies, even though one is a boy and one is a girl.

He has named them.

Part of him feels like it's a foolish thing to do, to name something he's not sure he's going to be able to keep, but he's been toying with these names since he was only four or five months along, when the pups were just something he was vaguely aware of but a secret he could hide from everyone.

Cooper and Sophie.

He wonders if Steve will like the names, and, with a grim sense of foreboding, he wonders if Steve will ever get to meet them.

They are both so tiny -- partially because Danny himself is not a large person, and partially because male omegas' pups are generally small -- and neither of them could weigh more than two or three pounds.

Sophie likes to be nuzzled up on his scent gland, and Cooper prefers to rest against his chest, where upon he lets out a tiny growl if the omega tries to move him, because he's the little alpha out of them two of them.   
Sophie, his little omega, just wants to be snuggled up close where she can smell him.

He's started to tell them stories about the good prince Steven and his mighty team of warriors; Lady Kono, Sir Chin the knight, and Friar Jerry.

They've started to let him spend more time with the babies, for whatever reason, and Danny is too enamored with their presence to contemplate on it. Eventually, a small changing table is installed in his cell, but curiously, not a crib.

It's when they tell him that he has to sleep with the babies next to him that he starts to get suspicious, not that he wasn't already planning on sleeping with them clutched against him anyway. Why the rule though? Why do they care?

They require him to stick his arm through a small slot to have his blood tested daily, and his fingertips always ache from the constant needle pricks.

When they start coming by to take the baby's blood every other morning, it doesn't go well. The babies’ tiny wails almost make him want to do the same, and he feels overwhelmed and helpless over their pain.

Cooper manages to grab the few blonde chest hairs Danny has left in a deathgrip for hours before the little alpha calms down again and he ends up trying to nurse for comfort despite his full little belly. Sophie just looks profoundly insulted and cries tiny mews into his neck, and he sighs and rocks her, pressing gentle kisses against her back and murmuring sweet things warmly against her skin.

They are his whole world, and when he has enough sense to step back out of the consuming, overwhelming obsession that is his fixation on his pups, Danny tries to remember Steve’s smile, his touch, and his scent. He knows Steve is working his hardest on finding him, and Danny tells his own gaunt reflection in the glass staring back to hang in there.

But he looks like a lonesome ghost of himself.

 

* * *

 

Nellie comes through for the team, and she spins the tale on the tech table about Simon Landsfort -- father of Logan Landsfort -- and how his old family money was drained through research on omegas through the navy.

"He wanted to weaponize omegadren and, for a while, so did the NAVY," Nellie tells them, and Steve frowns so harshly in his chair that the young journalism student looks up and freezes.

"How in the heck would that even work?" Kono says, beating Steve to it.

The alpha shares a glance with her and they both stare back at Nellie.

"I don't know many alphas," Nellie admits, "But I've read enough about them to know that there's not much that can stop them. There's no Vulcan hand pinch spot to grab or Achilles heel to aim for."

Jerry, upon hearing the word Vulcan, is absolutely bursting with admiration of such clever pop-culture allusions, and looks instantly like he's paying more attention.

The concept is lost on Steve but he can infer enough to follow along.

"So the omegadren was going to be weaponized as a way to incapacitate alphas on the battlefield." She raises her hands like she's waiting for head-nods, but the team is still skeptical.

"What like, the Care-bear Stare equivalent of biological warfare? You spray an alpha in the face with it and they instantly go all warm and fuzzy?" Kono mutters, raising her brows.

"Steve," Jerry asks, "What actually happens when you're exposed to something like that?"

Steve blushes. ‘I came on Danny's leg and started drooling,’ and no, that's not what he's going to tell them. "Well... Alphas can get scent drunk. It comes on pretty quickly."

"That's actually a really brilliant idea for a weapon," Kono muses. "It's the only weapon I can think of that would take away the will to fight against the weapon itself."

Steve nods at the point Jerry just made because it's a good one, but he has a follow up question. "If that idea has been around for so long, why aren't we using it today in the Middle East?"

Nellie's shoulders fall slightly. "Side effects -- bad ones. The only way to measure which omegas had the highest levels of omegadren was to separate them from their mates. Only the pregnant ones had levels high enough to provide adequate amounts of omegadren, and the separation was causing --"

"Miscarriages," Steve finishes for her in a quiet voice. The air in the room is thick suddenly and his betas tense at the sadness in his voice.

Even Nellie looks like a light has gone out in her usually eager eyes. "Yes," she says sadly. "So the NAVY shut down the project."

Clenching his jaw, Steve shifts in his chair. "And Landsfort probably lost millions in potential earnings."

"He almost went bankrupt," Nellie nods.

"That sounds like something that would push Simon Landsfort to try something a bit drastic to re-make his fortune," Steve says slowly waving up a hand. "Sounds like motive for something shady."

"Exactly," Nellie retorts, turning back to the screen. "And that shady something turned out to be..." She pulls up a list of non-profit research funding organizations. "Charities. Charities that fund THRESH directly. And they're all doing suspiciously well, thanks to millions of dollars a year in 'anonymous benefactor' donations."

Steve rears back slightly, pulling a face. "What in the hell..." He turns to his team. “I want a full write up on every single charity by tonight.”

 

* * *

 

  
Danny is sleeping soundly with his two pups under a sheet against his bare chest one night when the air duct above him begins to creak. Flicking his eyes open from the mattress he has hauled off the bed and dragged into a corner, he stares up at the duct; it's about fifteen feet above him, and it begins to rattle dangerously.

He squints. "What in the f--"

A large square vent pops out of the duct, clattering to the floor a few feet away, but by the time it hits the ground, Danny is already on his knees and elbows, hovering in a panic over the pups. The two tiny babies are now growling and whining petulantly from being jostled, before they start to drift off again.

As the omega stares on with huge, widened eyes, a pale pair of hands begin to curl around the edge of the void from the duct and he can instantly smell another male omega.

"H-hello?" He whispers hoarsely, realizing he hasn't used his voice in a while, but his omega half is startled and he's having to fight the urge to hiss at the intruder.

In a rush on motion, something clambers out of the vent and slides down the heavy pendant lamp chord, nearly popping off the metal lampshade but letting go just in time.

"Where am I?" A man's voice hisses. "The fuck am I?"

Danny is at his feet between this man and the pups. The man is about six feet tall with a lean build -- he's taller but he's gangly. Danny could still take him.

His omega brain is a primal beat thrumming in the back of his thoughts. Threat, threat, threat, pups, threat, kill, threat...

The crazed looking man edges closer, "Where am I, dammnit?"

"You're in my fucking cell!" Danny snarls, flexing his fists at his sides as the alarm starts to blare louder in the background "Who are you?!"

"What cell block is this? I was supposed to make it all the way to the outside vent," the young man grabs the sides of his head as a yellowish gas starts to flow into the cell from the hole in the vent. "I've been here for four fuckin rounds, four fucking litters, and I'm not going back alive!"

"You can't stay in here," Danny snarls, "what's that stuff? What the fuck is that!?" He stares up at the yellowish gas now flooding into the cell and feels his heart race at the thought of the gas approaching the pups.

"If I make it out of the compound this whole place gets shut down and no, no, no we can't have that, can we?!" Kyle's head snaps over to stare at him; "They knew I was in the vents, they tried to flush me back out with the gas ."

Danny's claws and fangs pop; "If that gas hurts my pups I swear on my life you'll die in here."

"You do have pups in here! I knew it! Why are they letting you keep them in here?!" Kyle hisses. Danny stares in horror at the man when Kyle whips his head around in a frenzy, sniffing the air. "God they smell so new, can I just --"

"Stay away from them," Danny snaps, surprising even himself with how vicious it sounds as he fans his hands out protectively.

Kyle gives him a leering laugh that's melodic in all the wrong ways as he tries to see over Danny's shoulder. "This must be your first litter; isn't that sweet. Well the gas?" He glances up, "The gas is pretty tame compared to what's coming."

The gas is starting to make Danny's head swim and an alarm starts to blare in the distance. He hears the footfalls of guards, guards that are going to come in there -- where his pups are -- looking for this guy.

"You have no idea what you're in for," The guy hisses.

"I think," Danny flicks his eyes up, "you brought your fucking trouble into my cell, and if you don't climb back up into that rat hole right now, you're gonna regret it."   
  
A beam from a flashlight suddenly casts into his cell through the glass, "HE'S IN HERE!"

Danny startles backing toward his pups as they start to whimper and howl for him, and just knowing that calling for him is their only defense mechanism is weighing heavy on his shoulders. "Stay the fuck over there," Danny lunges toward him, and he feels his primal brain starting to take over as the doorknob to his cell starts to unlock.

Kyle tries to claw past him, trying to get away from the guards, but he's trying get past him toward, coincidentally, the babies.

That's the last thing Danny remembers.

He comes to with another alarm blaring in his ears and the pups are absolutely shrieking. There's something hot and coppery and pliant in his mouth and he realizes, When he opens his eyes, that his fangs are sunk into Kyle's neck. The intruder's eyes are clawed up and he's limply hanging in Danny's grasp.

The detective tears his teeth out of the dead man's neck, horrified, and looks up at the barrage of flashlight beams focused on him as the body drops to the floor.

"Christ almighty! He killed him!" One of them yells, "This is the one they want for the procedure?! He's the worst out of all of them!"

One of the pups lets out a tiny howl and Danny turns to hover over them, heart racing and eyes wide in a panic -- he has no idea what's going to happen next.

"If he has the most omegadren out of all of them then obviously he's the most dangerous feral here," snaps a gruff voice. "Not his fault some idiot jumped into his cell with him and spooked him. But the boss needs to know."

There's a long pause where the guards just stare at him and he slowly bundles up the pups to his chest, wrapped up in a sheet, before letting out a low hiss.

One of the guards starts to back out. "I don't get paid enough to get mauled by this thing!" When Danny hisses again, the others start to follow.

 

* * *

 

"And the escapee? What are his whereabouts?" The director sighs, rocking slightly in the plush leather executive chair. After a day spent trying to dispel suspicion from the other members of the board all day in the office, he was not looking forward to more annoyances at his second, covert occupation.

"The escapee is dead, sir. He had already contributed four rounds and his genetic material was going to be harvested by early next week."

He narrows his eyes; "Were you able to harvest the material any way?"

"Yes."

He purses his lips, nodding. "Good. Good, good."

There's a beat of silence and oh, joy, an idea has struck, he thinks, I can see it in their eyes.

"What are we supposed to be doing with 0100 now, sir?"

"0100 obviously needs to be in a clean cell -- any blood borne illness that affects him from the escapee's remains could hinder our progress on the project."

"Director... why are we even letting the pups stay in the room?"

He pauses looking up and, really, what is he even paying these people for besides their confidentiality? "Because although 0100 has the highest naturally occurring omegadren we've ever seen, his hormones will peak even higher after time spent with his pups..."

"Meaning he'll be at his highest possible omegadren percentage for harvesting and cloning?!?"

"Obviously."

The peon nods obsequiously, taking notes. ‘That's cute. Where's my scotch?’

 

* * *

 

Steve is finishing a security detail for the governor the next day, prepping a team to cover a controversial political figure from overseas to come through Hawaii for an upcoming peace conference when he gets a text from Max from the lab. Finding Danny is all he cares about, but after neglecting his job for a week in favor of solving the case to find his mate, Steve is assured by his team that he can spare an afternoon to personally help the Governor.

But knowing that this text is about the only case he feels compelled to work on is enough to draw him back into the hunt for Danny.

From: Max Bergman [4:13:57] The soil's mineral composites are within optimal ranges.

  
Steve looks down at his phone and stares.

The soil wasn't sour at all. Northamer was wrong.

Or lied to, says a voice in the back of his head in a skeptical, contrary tone that sounds uncannily like his mate.

Steve excuses himself, leaving a competent beta in charge and heads back to the lab where the team is all looking at him, staring expectantly.

"What’s up?" He mutters gruffly.

"Max told us about the soil," Kono says quietly. "And get a load of this."

She hands him a page out of a department of agriculture survey.

"What am I looking at here?" Steve asks, making a beeline for the coffee. It better not be burned.

"This is the actual Department of Ag. test on the soil that was given to Marvin Northamer."

"It looks terrible, not one of these minerals is within range," the alpha mutters, stopping in his tracks. "This is the same soil that max tested?"

"There's even a re-test, a year later -- both fail with flying colors," the beta quips.

The alpha glances up from the paper with a frown, knowing the Max and the lab had never been wrong before, and had said the soil was okay as far as three feet down-. "Then I'd say someone gave Marvin misleading information."

"And look who that someone was, boss," Chin says ominously, pointing at the signature from the department representative who authorized the tests.

"Arthur Grimly -- again." Steve smacks his fingertips against the paper. "The one who authorized the sale."

Steve looks up at all of his betas faces as they wait for direction. His alpha half beams under their loyal attention and dedication and for a moment he's his old proud self again instead of the broken shell he is without Danny.

"You know what this means. We've got a name; Arthur Grimly. What else do we know?"

"And we know that Arthur Grimly's fuckery with the Department of Agriculture tests lead to Northamer farm shutting down," Jerry explains, holding up the logbook from the museum. "And it forced all of the omegas -- like Annie Teller -- that were holding out to leave the farm and join the NAVY research project."

Steve nods, turning to Kono. "At which point..."

"Arthur was there waiting to swoop in again to buy up the land," Kono says.

"Exactly," the alpha says, turning finally to Chin. "And then --?"

Chin squares his shoulders back with a grim expression. "And then the navy shut down the project because of the miscarriages and bond sickness -- causing Simon Landsfort to lose most of his family's money."

Steve crosses his arms. "And we know that didn't sit well with him, right, Jerry?" He turns to the large beta who's pulling up something on the tech screen. "How did Logan get in on the family business?"

"Simon lobbied for a state position for his son at the newly formed THRESH, and began garnering private funding the research through the charities..." Jerry begins, pulling up a list of non-profits. "Charities which, by the way, all have boards inexplicably comprised of state employees."

Steve blinks. "State employees?"

This is new.

Jerry pulls a face. "Luckily I don't see the governor on here. But we've got everyone from the director of the Hawaiian medical association to prison wardens to members of the state board of Law Enforcement. And they're uh... All living suspiciously well on their state salaries, so there's money coming from somewhere for all of them."

"What are you saying?" Kono frowns.

“This is going to sound like a conspiracy theory,” Jerry sighs. "But I think the charities are laundering money and it kicks back to the charity board members. I think they're in on whatever Simon Landsfort is making money on."

The room goes dead silent.

What?

"Jerry, that's a hell of an accusation," Steve says slowly. “That doesn't just sound like a conspiracy theory, that is a conspiracy theory.”

"Well, you tell me what this looks like to you, then." The large beta says quickly, pulling up some public records. "For one of the supposed non-profit bigwigs, I’ve got a prison warden living like a surgeon. I found records of taxes paid on a Maserati and a 5,000 square foot home, at a reported state salary lower than 50K a year.."

"Damn," Kono murmurs lowly. "That's a lot more exciting than the usual one bedroom apartment and a Hyundai Sonata."

Jerry nods vigorously. "Yeah, so it would be hard to find incentive to snitch in this set up. The state's been lowering government salaries every year for budget cuts, but if you're in on whatever this is you can live like a King anyway."

"Sounds like it's already a pretty tangled web," Steve mutters. He briefly thinks back on how frustrating it had been to hear every officiate he complained to about THRESH parroting back the same information to him, as if their lines had been rehearsed.

Because apparently they had been. Jesus Christ almighty.

"So, if this is true, then the Landsforts' plan runs deeper than we thought," Steve says slowly, leaning onto the table with one arm before straightening up to run a hand down over his face. "He's gotta be profiting off of THRESH, flooding these charities with money and misallocating the funds to keep everyone quiet about whatever the hell is happening."

Kono frowns. "But how? What's profitable about a subspecies of humans -- especially if the military knows the omegadren can't be humanely weaponized? No one's gonna bite on that idea again."

Steve sighs as he heads toward his office. "That's what we have to figure out," he mutters. "Omegas go in and money comes out -- but _how_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhh the plot thickens :D I'm so happy that many of y'all have stuck with this fic for so long; we're closing in on the ending!


	19. Chapter 19

 

Steve marks a red slash through the day's box on the calendar. Another day apart from his mate. Thirteen days.

He thinks he's holding up remarkably well until he feels his eyes watering at the sight of a new born pup at the grocery store.

He wants to scream at everyone that passes by, tell them what's happening, tell them how much Danny means to him and how he feels like he's in hell on Earth not knowing if his children are okay, if they've been born, or if they're even alive.

But life, oddly, goes on around him, and the days keep passing, and the red slashes keep appearing on his calendar without any regard to how fucked up Steve's situation is.

Passing by the unbuilt baby furniture in the corner of the nest room is the worst part of Steve's day, but he refuses to cover it with a sheet for his own sake, despite the ache it causes in his stomach.

People keep running errands, small-talking, politely chatting around him, and Steve feels like shaking them and snarling.

He feels like snarling a lot today, and there's a slight tremor in his hands, probably from running out of the EOS Joe had nicked from the evidence locker.

There's something about that drug, something dangerously effective and alluring about the way it calms him down and quells the first aggressive tendrils of bond sickness gripping him.

He texts Chin to meet him in the parking lot before his shift to ask him to grab another vial and the Beta hesitates.

"We had to take it out of the locker," Chin sighs sympathetically. "It was such high of a grade that the state made us hand it over; said they're gonna use it in a sting operation in Honolulu. I'm sorry, Brah."

Steve clenches his jaw, swallowing thickly. "Oh."

Chin gives him a concerned once over. "Steve, are you alright?"

No.

It's bad today.

It's _bad_ bad.

He needs his mate, needs to hold him, to smell him, to lay him out and worship his body and lay with him naked on the beach under the moonlight and fuck him as the surf rushes in around them until he's lost in the blue of his omega's kind but sharp eyes.

The alpha tenses his shoulders, stretching his neck as he feels the urge to roar back hit and finally pass. "M'fine," Steve mutters, and Chin gives him a knowing look before looking away toward the low morning sun.

"I'll see you up there then, boss," Chin sighs.

Steve tears into the lab twenty minutes later, fangs popped and eyes blazing and the scent of beta panic curls into the air around him. Off of everyone but Max.

"Hello, Commander McGarrett. I see you are experiencing the onset a feral episode," he says bluntly, blinking up at him. "Might I suggest you find a calming place and perhaps listen to some Yanni or Enya?"

Steve stares back, breathing heavily. "Max," he says in a low voice. "I need you to do something for me."

The lab director furrows his brows in confusion as Steve holds up the vial of EOS, drained except for s few drops. "Commander...?"

"I need you to break down replicate this substance." Steve says flatly, shoving the vile at him.

"I see. I can put it through the gas chromatographer to reveal the organic compounds within the substance and combine the ingredients in the lab; luckily I only need a drop." He looks up. "May I ask what it is?" Max asks, cocking his head, and Steve looks down at his feet, suppressing a growl.

The lab director nods. "I will derive the nature of the compound with discretion, then. It should only take me a few hours."

Steve nods. Perfect, he thinks. Now I only have to get through the morning without killing someone.

It unfortunately seems like a much easier task than it actually is, however, when Steve has to sit through the morning at his desk just waiting for Max to walk through the door. Kono and Cath are fighting in the womens' locker room down the hall, and the sound is grating on each one of his frayed nerves.

Jerry tries to walk in with a map, babbling something how all of the properties surrounding the Kona Lai Nature Reserve are now up for sale because of the families' fear over the gruesome crime scenes.

"Please not now, beta," Steve sighs slowly, giving Jerry a pained look, and the large man frowns sadly.

"Is there anything I can do?" He mumbles suddenly, stepping closer, but Steve shows his teeth.

Jerry freezes, and Steve shakes his head, running hands down his face.

"I'm sorry Jerr," he says softly. "I'm sorry. But no, unless you know exactly where Danny and the pups are, I'm afraid I'm really not going to be very functional this morning for casework or conversations."

Jerry nods, trudging sadly out of his office and Steve feels a pang of guilt until he hears the sound of rushed footsteps clattering down the hall.

It's Max.

 _Shit_.

 _He's probably realized that I've asked him to make a drug for me_ , he thinks, glancing up toward the ceiling exasperatedly. He really doesn't know how to explain what bond sickness feels like to a Beta.

"Commander," Max begins, and Steve glances up silently to regard him. "The substance..."

Steve doesn't even blink. "It's EOS, I know."

The lab director shakes his head with wide eyes. "It's omegadren."

Steve pulls a face; " _Synthetic_ omegadren."

Raising up his hands, Max sputters to explain. "No! EOS is synthetic omegadren -- I am aware, commander, as I have been doing Tox Screens in autopsies from EOS overdoses for months." He pauses. "But what you gave me, that is not synthetic. That is pure Omegadren."

The alpha freezes, "Pure Omegadren?" No wonder this stuff was so high grade.

"Commander!" Max says loudly, leaning in to shake his shoulder and fuck Steve has to restrain himself from snarling.

"Dammit, Max! You wanna lose a hand? I am not fucking okay right now!" He roars, fangs exposed as he springs up out of his chair to lean into the scientist's face. "Now what is it?!"

Max's face is pale. "The only way to harvest organic omegadren of this grade," he swallows, "Is directly from the brain of an Omega."

Steve stares down at Max, finally starting to realize the gravity of what's happening.

_Oh my God._

"Commander, an omega was killed to make this," Max whispers, holding up the vial until it glints in the light.

Steve collapses back in his chair, stunned.

Holy fuck.

This is it. This is what's been going on. This is why all of the bodies were omegas. They were being _farmed_.

"Simon knew he couldn't weaponize omegadren," Steve breathes. "So he made it into a drug. He's selling it on the black market as high grade EOS. That's where...That's where the money for the charities is coming from to pay off the state officiates to turn a blind eye to the experiments at THRESH! He's been laundering the drug money through the charities as anonymous donations!"

Steve seizes forward to rip his desk phone out of the receiver to dial into the intercom line.

"Attention! Commander McGarrett speaking. I need all Five-0 personnel in the conference room for a briefing, now."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaah! Omg you guys! He's figured it out!!!


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry these chapters are so short lately, but they're hot off the press ;p
> 
> Any mistakes are mine, because, like an idiot, I fiddled around with the chapter AGAIN and added to it after my wise, wise beta look over it.
> 
> EDIT: I am *thrilled* to announce that someone brilliant is working hard on a podfic to this story! I'll post a link when they forward me one. I just sampled a chapter this morning and y'all are certainly in for a treat ;D Woopwoop -- D.N.G.

* * *

 

It doesn't take long to get the kid from the EOS raid at the university to squeal. Steve threatens him with a conspiracy charge, explains that he can saddle this kid with everything from selling out back behind a club all the way up to manufacturing the drug and murdering the omegas it took to make the high grade stuff.

The kid is crying for his mother by the time the alpha storms out of the interrogation room.

 

* * *

 

Steve begins to have violent dreams. He's had dreams about his job before, usually the kind that leave him more stressed than rested in the morning, but none of the dreams involved this much killing before.

And certainly not killing like this; when he shuts his eyes, Steve is tearing his fangs into suspects’ necks, stalking criminals in darkness like an animal, relying on his alpha senses more than reason and clawing into hostile gunmen without mercy.

He blames it on a lack of omegadren in his system and wonders if it's the onset of bond sickness.

If it is, he won't have much more time to solve the case. It’ll only be a matter of time, he realizes grimly, before his investigative lucidity starts to fray at the edges, replaced slowly with feral aggression.

He wakes up one night to find his mom hovering in to doorway, eyes glinting silently in the doorway.

“Doris?” He slurs groggily, blinking in the dark, and she just stares at him. He pulls the sheets closer around his barely clothed form. “What is it? Did work call?”

“You were roaring in your sleep,” she says finally. “I just… that's not like you.”

“I'm fine; go back to sleep,” he offers dismissively as he lay back down against his pillow.

She slinks off silently in the darkened hallway. When Steve wakes to find claw marks gouged into the sheets and mattress, he doesn't say anything to anyone about it.

Because even alphas don't have claws that long.

 

* * *

 

  
After two more rounds of questioning, working their way up the ladder of suspects -- scumbag after scumbag -- a hugely tall half Asian woman is brought in.

  
Steve watches her through the half closed blinds of his office window as two large HPD betas escort the woman into the interrogation room.

Hmm.

This woman is different from the rest. There's a steely resolve and a nefarious intelligence behind her dark eyes with the way she watches every single one of Steve's movements when he silently walks into the dimly lit room, gun on his hip.

Steve takes one look at her and knows that they are finally going to get some answers, but also knows the answers won't be easily won. He sighs.

"She looks familiar," Cath mutters, pacing outside of the interrogation room. Steve nods silently, he has his earpiece in, and Cath can see him nodding through the one way mirror.

  
“Normally, I would start off by asking you some questions and reading you your offenses,” Steve  
says slowly, pacing in front of her. “But I can smell your anxiety. And I know you know that EOS trafficking is over for you.”

She spits near his feet in response.

Classy, Steve thinks as he glances down at the bubbling glob of spit on the cement floor.

He glances at his nails -- for the tenth time that morning -- but they’re as short and normal as ever, and he vaguely thinks back on the mystery of the torn sheets, and wishes he could be tearing claws like that into this woman’s ribs if it meant he could get information out of her sooner. Just thinking about it has his blood rushing quicker; his fangs unsheath under his lips, sliding along the weathered tracks of scar tissue on the inside of his mouth. He’s keenly aware, however, that even if those gashes in the mattress this morning had indeed been from his own fingers, he had no way to do that at will.

“ _Focus, McGarrett_ ,” Cath whispers in his ear.

"You gonna tell me where you're getting the omegadren or are we going to do this the long, difficult, painful way?" Steve says lowly, flashing his fangs. "Because whatever patience I had made its way out the door with the last two jackasses I had to question yesterday."

The woman is silent, staring straight ahead.

“The conspiracy charges on this case are pretty impressive,” he continues, “And you’re looking at multiple life sentences. I don't know how deep you were involved, yet, but I’ll find out -- it’s a matter of time. We both know that.” He turns to glare down at her. “So, when they’re up on the bench deciding your sentence, do you want the court to know that you refused to cooperate, or do you want them to hear how you admitted your involvement early on? It's your choice.”

She doesn’t say a word.

“I personally wouldn't want them to hate me anymore than they have to,” the alpha mutters. “But then again, that's just me.”

She doesn't fall for the threat.

Steve grits his teeth, glancing up at the single glare of a light in the ceiling. They use the haunting shadows as an element of intimidation; everything about this room is intimidating, in fact, but she’s not succumbing to it, which means she’s probably been tortured before at least once in her career. Not uncommon for a drug trafficker.

An hour later, she doesn't fall for a promise of leniency after that, and she seems unphased by the idea of the conspiracy charges that Steve finally lays on the table after yet another hour of questioning.

 _Damn_ this woman.

The alpha runs a hand back over his scalp where beads of sweat are collecting from the harsh light in this cement room and fuck he needs a good, strong coffee to keep dealing with this bitch.

“Steve, I swear I've seen her before," Cath hisses into the intercom in his ear for the third time.

He walks out of the room, trying not to show his exasperation as he turns to her, hands on his sides. "Okay, Cath, but where? Where could you have possibly seen her before?"

She gestures to the tech table where she has the sketch of the person the EMTs claim to have seen with the supposed "life-flight" helicopter.

  
Steve furrows his brow in a frown, glancing over the sketch, and, yeah, he's starting to see the faint resemblance. "You think Shea Lin was on the bird that picked up Danny?"

Cath turns up her hands and purses her lips as if to say that she can't be sure.

"Well she's not saying a damn word, and all I'm going to be able to legally hold her on is trafficking EOS. We can't detain her in that room for much longer -- she's been here five hours and I've got nothing."

"I'll call the EMT's in to come in and make an ID," Cath says quickly, loping off to use his desk phone. “I _know_ it’s her.”

 

* * *

 

Joe White is already on his way to headquarters when he gets a call from his fellow Navy alpha, Cath. “Joe,” he says in his usual easy-going drawl.

But she’s panting in distress as soon as he puts the iphone’s earpiece up to the side of his face. “Cath?”

  
“ _JOE_ ,” She shrieks, “Joe, get up here! I’m at Five-O -- it’s Steve! We made a positive ID on someone from the helicopter that took Danny and Steve, h-he just-- LOST it, I--" 

Joe clenches his teeth and lowers his foot heavy onto the accelerator, hanging up the phone. He doesn’t have a siren on his truck, but he manages to weave like a bat out of hell through the early afternoon rush.

Everyone is staring at him when he bursts in through the door, and he can already smell the alpha aggression coming from the interrogation room. He expects to find his young friend feral, but what he finds, well -- he doesn’t quite know what he finds exactly.

Steve is on the ground shaking like he’s having some sort of seizure, all the while snarling and baring his fangs.

Cath and Chin are trying to hold him down as Kono holds a handgun up at a tall woman on the floor in the corner. Cath looks up at him, fangs popped. “We darted him twice -- he started trying to kill the suspect, and w-we need her alive to find Danny! Look at his hands!”

Joe doesn’t know what to expect when he glances down at one of Steve’s twisted hands in Chin’s grip, but it isn’t this. Steve’s claws are black and elongated into inhuman looking, curved hooks. Like talons. Even longer than Danny’s claws. “What in the hell --”

“His eyes! They’re black!” Cath shouts, looking up at him desperately. But Joe has no idea what in the fuck this is. He’s never seen this before.

Executive decision, he thinks nervously. “Everyone out,” Joe shouts, taking hold of Steve’s wrists on the floor of the interrogation room. From the corner of his eye, he sees Kono shuffling the tall woman out, and finally, turning back to the raging young alpha, Joe mutters a rushed apology before striking him across the brow and knocking him out cold.

He sits there, leaning back and panting on the floor as Steve goes limp against the polished cement, and waits -- just to be sure.

“Jesus,” he breathes, dragging the back of his wrist over his brow.

It’s a long quiet moment before anyone speaks, and Joe slowly pushes himself up off the floor to leave the room (locking the door behind him because holy _hell_ he’s not doing that again for a long time).

Someone brings him a plastic cup of room temperature water and Joe sips on it quietly, staring through the one way mirror at the alpha in the center of the floor.

He can tell the betas and Cath are about to ask him another question, but he just raises up a hand silently, motion for everyone to settle the hell down for a damned minute.

“Someone call Doris McGarrett,” he mutters, crinkling the cup in his hand. “Let’s just start with that, alright?”

 

* * *

 


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my gosh you guys! I was so excited to post this that it's currently un-beta'd; the edited version will be up as soon as my wise beta Bankroll1001 gets a chance to look over the chapter.

* * *

 

  
Steve lifts his head groggily to the sound of Joe and Doris arguing; neither of which are usually at his place of work. The last thing he remembers is the EMTs making a positive ID on the tall Asian woman. He remembers realizing that she had been one of the people responsible for kidnapping his vulnerable mate, he remembers the turn of the dark moment when he made the mental connection that she, this woman in front of him, had stolen away his mate and unborn pups with the intent to kill them to produce a drug, and then he remembered...

Nothing.

He feels like he's been hit by a truck.

"What makes you think I had anything to do with this? My family wasn't even native, we're from Cleveland for christ's sake," Doris snaps. "This has got to be from his father's side, and John's dead, Joe. I can't just ask him what to do about any of this!"

"Well you better find someone on the other half of the family tree that isn't pushing daisies, Doris, because I watched his hands turn right here on this floor," Joe hisses in a hushed voice.

"He's been roaring in his sleep since Danny disappeared, it's just stress, he's been stressed before -- it's not going to be permanent," his mother urges and why hadn't she said anything to him about the roaring? "He doesn't need another thing to worry about Joe, he has to focus on the investigation!"

Steve frowns, or rather, tries to -- his entire left eyebrow is swollen, and it hurts like a bitch to try and make any sort of expression. He grunts out in pain, and that does it. Both of the alphas freeze and look over at him.

"Why are my own handcuffs on my wrists?" Steve mutters slowly, lifting his bound hands as he stares up at his senior officer and mother.

The two older alphas lock eyes and Doris seems to give Joe an 'I told you so' look before the older man walks over silently to uncuff him.

"What happened?" He asks, looking uneasily between the pair of alphas.

There's something big hanging in the air around him and it's oppressively salient in the silence. The question somehow makes it worse.

"You... Had a feral episode," his mother says finally, watching him as he stands up slowly.

She smells nervous, which is something he has never scented on her before.

He raises a hand to his brow; "Did the suspect do this?"

Joe's mouth purses slightly. "Actually son, I had to pop you 'cross the brow," he states matter of factly.

Steve would be raising his brows if it weren't painful as hell to move them. "I'm assuming there was a good reason for that?"

They're silent, glancing at each other and whatever the fuck is going on he's had enough. "If there wasn't, then I wouldn't let on about it," he mutters as he starts to walk toward the tech table to start searching deeper into Shea Lin's records, but then he pauses in the doorway, looking back over his shoulder. "Why is she here?" He looks at his mother and he can't help but sound distrustful.

Joe opens his mouth to talk but his mother cuts him off, "I just... wanted to check up on the investigation."

The older man looks at her -- as if in surprise -- and his mouth is opening and closing before he awkwardly turns back to Steve and just nods.

Nods like everything's okay and not totally fucking pissing Steve the hell off.

The SEAL clenches his jaw as he tries to process the fact that his most trusted senior officer -- at the request of his mother -- is lying to him, during the most stressful investigation of his life. He doesn't need this. He doesn't need any of this; not right now, not when he's so close to finding Danny.

"You okay, boss?" Kono blurts quickly, appearing before him, and she spends an extra moment staring uneasily at his hands.

He glances down at them.

Huh.

"I'll be fine," he mutters gruffly as he heads toward his office. "I'm going to call to get a warrant from the magistrate so we can search Shea Lin's home. I need you to put Shea Lin in a cell and guard the entrance."

She blinks in surprise. "From what?"

He slams his office door without answering before sighing and looking down at his still-normal-looking hands. "From me," he whispers lowly, shoulders falling. If he kills this woman -- if he loses control” again from whatever the hell Doris was talking about -- Danny is as good as dead.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Kono is hunched over, texting rapidly and suffering through the last feeble crumbs of a stale break room pastry when Steve’s mother Doris appears in the doorway. She blinks in surprise at the alpha, wondering why Doris would have made the long walk through the maze of the department to the basement where a small block of holding cells sits.

“I’m here to take over your shift,” she says, smiling gently, but it doesn't match her tense posture.

Kono glances back at Shea Lin, who’s now sitting cross armed in the corner of the cell; the woman hasn't said a single word since she was brought in.

The boss hadn't said anything about his mother taking over, but then again, Kono’s phone has been on the ever dreaded roulette of one percent battery power for an agonizing fifteen minutes, and her charger is all the way out in her car.

She’d call her boss to check on this, but, first, her phone would die, and, second, Steve and the crew are busy at Shea Lin’s last known residence, trying to get evidence of wherever the omegas are being kept.

Her phone finally buzzes weakly in her hand as it dies, and the screen goes black. Damn.

“Just for a little while then,” Kono sighs, knowing that this woman has gone on more black ops missions than even her boss has. Something tells her Doris isn't the cut-the-crust-off-your-sandwiches type of mom in her off time, either. “I’ll be back in twenty.”

She starts toward her car, flashing a forced grin at Doris. If she doesn't get her phone charged soon, Kono is going to have to deal with her alpha’s meltdown over why she suddenly stopped responding during a very important conversation.

It’s just for a little while, anyway.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

  
Doris removes a set of bobby pins from her back pocket, slowly bending them into straight lines as she stares, eyes cold, at this ‘Shea Lin’ woman. The woman who knows where Danny and her two grandbabies are being kept. The woman who thinks she’s not going to talk.

“When my pups were eight and nine years old,” she starts in a calm, even tone; “I was asked to leave my residence and join the military for active duty again.”

Shea Lin doesn't move so much as a finger, not even appearing to register the Alpha’s words, but Doris knows she’s listening.

“They said that, given certain skillsets I had, I was too useful for them to let me retire early,” she says, a faint bitterness audible in her words. “They said that what I could do was rarely seen in this day and age, and that it was _paramount_ that I use my … skills… for my country. I can't tell anyone about this -- can't tell my own son why I had to leave my family behind -- because I still get _polygraphed_ every year.”

She starts to pick the lock.

“But this time, I’m going to use my skills for me. For my son. For his mate, and for their pups.” She pauses, listening for a few clicks in the lock. "Because they only ask me during the test if I've _told_ anyone -- they don't ask me if I've _shown_ anyone..."

Shea Lin looks up at the sound of the lock popping open.

“So you’re going to tell me where you took Danny,” Doris growls flatly, swinging open the door, “Or you’re going to die.”

“I’m not telling you shit,” Shea Lin hisses, scrambling up into a defensive position. She pushes off of the bars of the cell, running headlong at Doris, meaning to tackle her to the ground, when she just stops, staring.

As Shea Lin stares in horror at what this strange woman starts to do, she starts to scream.

  
xxxxxxxxx

When Kono starts down the stairs toward the basement cell blocks, charger in hand, she hears someone screaming.

She starts to sprint down the hall, grabbing her gun out of her holster, but when she turns the corner, she’s surprised to see that nothing is out of place -- except for Shea Lin, who looks hysterical.

“D-Doris?” Kono yells, rushing forward. Steve’s mother turns, buttoning her black cardigan and gives her a completely unphased, even-keeled smile.

“Yes?” She says loudly over the sound of Shea Lin shrieking.

“What -- why is she -- what happened?!” Kono blurts, because really, what in the fuck could Doris have done?

“I’ll tell you,” Shea Lin suddenly sobs, “I’ll tell you everything, just -- keep that, that fucking monster away from me!!”

Kono whips around to stare in shock at Shea Lin before turning to ogle at Doris again, but the woman is smoothing down her light brown hair, walking slowly back toward the stairs.

“Jesus Christ,” Kono breathes, scrambling to plug in her phone to call Steve as Shea-Lin begs to confess everything. As she starts trying to explain the situation to Steve over the phone, Kono finally glances down toward the floor of the cell, where deep claw marks are gashed into the cement where it appears something huge was thrashing around.

“Kono?” Steve is calling out over the line in her silence. “Kono, you okay? Talk to me.”

I am most definitely not okay -- something fucking crazy is going on, Kono thinks before resolutely looking away from the gash marks. She’s not going to mention them -- she would sound like a lunatic for even voicing what she’s thinking --“I’m fine, don’t worry about me, just get over here to question Shea Lin so we can find Danny.”

xxxxxxxxx

It doesn't take long for Shea Lin to point out the location of what she calls ‘The Compound’ on a map.

“It’s here. Underground,” she whispers through tears running down her face.

“That’s the Kona Lai Nature Reserve,” Steve says gruffly, wondering if he can trust this lead at all. "The only thing that makes sense about that location, is that all of the properties around it are the ones going up for sale because of the crime scenes. So they're clearing out the surrounding residences. But it would mean that at least _most_ of the Hawaiian Department of Agriculture is involved..." 

The woman is sitting across from him at a table in the interview room, a much less intimidating version of the interrogation room. There’s a window, a water cooler in the corner, and even a slightly ratty looking fake Ficus tree that someone bought for a few bucks at a garage sale. It seems to calm the victims they interview.

Shea Lin, however, is anything but calm, and she genuinely seems like something has petrified her, but she won't say what.

He mulls over her words in his office, trying to wonder if he’s being lead into a trap or a wild goose chase.

But when Chin rushes in to show him something on the Tech Table, Steve follows quickly. It's an old brochure for the Church of New Dawn omega retreat that someone has scanned into Cherise Margo’s cold case file.

“We’ve seen this before,” Steve says quietly, crossing his arms, but then Chin shows him the back of the brochure.

“It has a list of ‘character building exercises’ on the back,” Chin says quickly, eyes not leaving the blue white glow of the screen.

Steve rubs a hand over his mouth, waiting, as Chin zooms in and sharpens the scan of the list.

And there. In a paragraph of tiny font that the machine can barely pick up…

“Come join us… For hiking and camping … In the center of Kona Lailana valley,” Steve reads out loud. He freezes. “Isn't that…”

“Exactly the area the Kona Lai Nature reserve is now covering,” Chin finishes.

“And Cherise Margo and Annie Teller disappeared on this retreat,” Steve realizes. A chill starts edging down his spine, raising his hackles up. “She’s telling the truth,” he breathes. “Get a team together now.”

xxxxxxxxxx

The team gets ready as quickly as possible, because --hopefully -- this is it, the moment they’ve been waiting for. They've found Danny.

Joe pilots a search light helicopter borrowed from HPD, and Chin, Steve, and Kono -- fully decked out in their Kevlar tack vests, cargos, helmets, and automatic weapons -- fill the aircraft, making sure that there are extra sets of earplugs for Danny and two pups for the return trip.

No one offers Steve the usual platitudes. No one says, ‘don’t worry, I’m sure Danny’s okay,’ because honestly, no one is sure, and no one wants to reveal their uneasy doubt.

The first pass over the nature reserve reveals nothing. But on the second pass over the thick jungle canopy that stretches for miles like a lush green blanket, Kono spots something glinting in the afternoon sun.

Skylights.

Windows, installed in the ground, that just happened to catch the setting sun at exactly the right angle.

They lower the bird in a clearing, and Steve tries to convince himself that he’s shaking from the unnervingly quick descent and not from anxiety over what he may find below the surface of this wild and green jungle.

xxxxxxxxx

They blow off one of the skylights with plastic explosive, and it immediately sets off an alarm. They dart most of the betas that are all wearing lab coats and lab goggles on the first two levels, and send the surprised technicians to the floor in silent heaps as the team makes their way lower and lower under ground.

Steve chooses to knock a few of the guards out with his bare hands, trying to vent off some of his nerves, but it only slightly helps.

Things are looking grim until Steve catches the unmistakeable scent of omegas. A lot of them.

He sprints forward, loping quickly in his black command boots before he reaches a stairwell and begins to spiral down lower and lower toward the scent.

There are cells on the lowest level, five stories down, and the hum of fluorescent lights drones on above him as he sprints, following a scent that he’s almost afraid to admit might be Danny’s. It’s familiar, it’s sending aching pangs of longing through his chest and his alpha half is whining under his firm resolve because please, God, please let it be him, let it be Danny.

He’s told his team to look for Logan Landsfort, and to try to handcuff anyone in charge until backup arrives, because Steve needs to find his mate now.

The scent is coming from a door that reads “0100” and, muttering a prayer under his breath to any deity that’s listening, Steve kicks in the door.

xxxxxxxx

Instantly, something vicious, blonde, and heavy slams into him. He feels fangs graze the skin of his neck.

Having expected at least a sentimental embrace if not a warm reunion, Steve is momentarily caught off guard. Throwing his hands up desperately, the alpha tries to pull the furious mess of teeth and claws away from him but only succeeds in suffering a few deep gashes to his forearms.

"Danny!" He yells; "Daniel, it's me, stop it! Stop!"

He manages to shove the brazen omega's shoulders back to get a good look at him. He's gaunt and skinny, with deep bags under his bloodshot, feral eyes, but it’s him.

It’s his mate, and he’s alive.

"Babe, c'you hear me?" He whispers, searching for any sign of recognition in Danny's face, but the blonde is hissing and snarling at him.

"You find him?" Joe yells over the com-link in his ear, and Steve presses the receiver on his wrist.

"I found him, but he's feral! He doesn't recognize me at all," Steve grunts, still wrestling with the omega.

"Get your saliva on his bond bite," Joe suggests quickly, "He's probably depleted of Alphadren!"

Using his inhuman alpha strength, Steve grits his teeth and lifts Danny, turning him to slam him down on the ground chest first. "Sorry, babe," he hisses when the omega yells out, clawing at the ground to get away from him. He yanks on Danny's hair, tugging his head down to expose the back of the small detective's neck, and leans in to lick along the skin.

His pheromone signatures are bitter with the taste of panic, exhaustion, and distress. He can also decipher -- within the rush of complex biochemical signals -- that Danny is the omega father of a young litter, young enough to still be nursing, and thank Jesus God in Heaven it means the pups are probably alive somewhere in this terrible fucking place.

“Calm down, babe, please -- it’s me,” he whispers against his skin, holding the omega tight enough to bruise him, and he’ll few guilty about that if he makes it out of here with Danny alive to see them. After a torturous minute, the frightened omega’s struggling starts to slow to a fatigued stir.

When Steve feels a gentle hand settle onto his, he looks up, rearing back to turn his mate in his arms until his mate is staring up at him with watering eyes.

"Steve," he breathes. "You found me..."

The look of surprise in his eyes breaks something in half deep in his chest, and Steve can only smile back, staring straight back into his mate’s eyes as he manages to nod dumbly. Danny leans in and wraps his arms desperately tight around Steve's torso, squeezing him in a death grip like he's afraid to ever let go again.

Steve feels his eyes redden and water as a weight he hadn't known he was carrying lifts off his tired shoulders in relief. "Hey buddy... You're okay now, we're gonna get you out of here."

He swallows thickly before Danny can respond and he reaches down to place two hands on his mate's now flat belly. The alpha’s mouth is dry with apprehension because he’s hoping, and he has a feeling, but he needs to hear it out loud. Steve knows he's not making sense, but all he can blurt out in the moment is: “Pups?"

"They're alive," Danny rushes to say, raising up his hands quickly. "They’re okay, they’re fine. We have a baby boy and a baby girl and they're -- they're so perfect and --"

Steve exhales, catching his breath and tries to tell himself to calm the fuck down. "Jesus. Thank god. Oh my God...Danny," he rambles, leaning in to kiss his mate deeply on the lips.

Danny grins a heartbreaking, sad smile, sniffing lightly as he nods and tries to regain his composure. "Sophie and Cooper; I-I named them, I didn't know if..."

"I love it," Steve interrupts him, nuzzling into his neck, clutching him closer. "Those are great names," he whispers, nodding, and his mate breaks into another relieved smile. "Now let's go find our pups, Danny. You have their scent?"

Steve's heart aches at Danny's desperate expression when the omega nods, pulling himself off the bed, and Steve raises his gun, keeping Danny close behind as he enters the corridor.

Danny has his nose in the air, and at one point starts to sprint ahead of the alpha.

"Wait! Danny, wait! Get behind me!" Steve growls, reaching out to grab him but the omega suddenly picks up his pace, letting out a low whine that means he must be close to the pups.

He rounds a corner and someone springs out of the shadows toward him, and before Steve can react, Danny ducks and swings with his fist to catch the figure upside the jaw, knocking them out cleanly.

It's a guard with similar tack gear and a bullet proof vest.

"I've been wanting to do that to someone for a long fucking time," the omega snarls flexing his clawed fist.

"We get the pups and we get out. Don't be reckless," Steve mutters.

“Don't be reckless,” Danny breathes, looking over at him incredulously, "This, coming from you."

The alpha ignores the comment, loping along behind his mate. "There's a helicopter waiting topside for us as soon as we find the --"

The butt of a gun hits the side of Danny's head from an open doorway and Steve roars, springing onto the guard that rushes into the hall as Danny staggers in pain against a wall. He's bleeding.

"Son of a bitch," Steve snarls, throwing a few punches to the guy's face and knocking the guard out. When he falls to the ground, the alpha notices that he's wearing similar tack gear, complete with a bullet proof vest. This isn't your average rent-a-cop security guard. "You alright, Danno?"

The omega nods, wincing as he holds his head. When he removes his hand, it comes away with blood on his fingertips and they both stare at it for a second. "I'm fine," Danny mutters quickly, trying to shake off the disorienting feeling before turning to dart down the hall again. "I’m fine, Steve c’mon. Let's just find them so we can get the fuck out of here -- I've spent enough time in this place!"

When Steve finally rounds a corner into a brightly lit room, he is completely unprepared for the sight of his mate leaning over two tiny babies.

Steve freezes, feeling his stomach tighten into a knot. “Danny…” He breathes softly.

His mate has the most unadulterated look of adoration on his face, staring at the two babies with such a candid expression of sweet and blissful love that it’s like Steve has spied him staring at the reason for his own existence.

The alpha feels the floor falling out from him with each step closer to the clear plastic incubation unit that holds his pups.

He opens his mouth to speak as he finally steps up to lean over the sterile incubator, but he's at a loss for words. Two tiny sets of Danny-blue eyes  
look up at him in wonder, and Steve feels all of his breath leave his body for one glorious, weightless moment.

His pups -- his babies. Danny made these, carried them, loved them, kept them safe and warm for so many months as they kicked and wiggled inside him all through the night, snuggled between the two of them in the nest. And here they are, looking up at him and reaching toward his familiar pheromones.

"They're beautiful aren't they," Danny breathes, reaching in gather the pups against his chest one by one.

Steve is dumbfounded at the sight of his gorgeous mate and their young litter before snapping himself out of the dreamlike haze and grabbing the blanket from the incubator and ripping in in half to make a sling for the pups.

"Hurry," Danny whispers, glancing over Steve's shoulder nervously as the alpha ties the blanket-sling around the detective's neck and shoulder.

One of the pups makes a disgruntled noise, reaching out to grab Steve's pinky finger and the alpha whines softly, feeling something in his chest tighten. _Oh God._

"They like you already," Danny whispers, glancing down with glistening eyes, but an alarm starts to blare in the hallway, startling the four of them. The babies cry out and _FUCK_ , wow, fuck -- it's the most unsettling noise Steve's heard besides his omega's howl.

Holy mother of --

It stabs into the very core of his brain painfully, urging him to do something, and he feels his fangs begin to pop as he backs away in surprise at the sensation, suddenly unsure.

Danny sees him starting to to go feral and nervously takes a step back, placing his hands over the upsets babies protectively. "Steve?"

The alpha turns away, panting as he taps the side of his head. "It's fine, I'm fine I just --"

"You're not fine, I can smell you from here," Danny hisses as Steve has to struggle not to fall to his knees at the sound of the pups crying. "You're not used to their distress!"

Steve finally stares up at the alarm system and lifts his silenced gun, firing off a shot straight into the control box, ending the shrill buzz of the alarm and the flashing lights.

The hormonal attack on his system lasts only another minute or so until the pups stop crying, and finally his brain stops splitting down the middle as he glances over at the pups wearily. "That doesn't happen to you when they cry?"

"They're not crying for me," he retorts, concerned. "When they're scared, they cry out for their Alpha."

_Jesus._

_Of course they do._

_I'm supposed to protect them._

Steve pinches the bridge of his nose, because the weight of fatherhood is hitting him like a blow to the chest. The sound has done something to him, making him itch in his skin with anxiety, and he doesn't feel right. "Let's get out of here," Steve mutters finally, hearing the rumbling footfalls of burly guards running their way.

"I smell gun oil," Danny whispers, sniffing the air beside him as Steve urges him through the maze of tunnels and back toward the exit.

"Probably because there are a lot of _guns_ headed our way," Steve retorts, keeping his gun raised ahead of them.

Someone darts out from an adjoining hallway like a shadowy blur, and Steve shoots the guy in the thigh, which may have been a mistake, because he screams out louder than the silenced gunshot -- alerting everyone to their position.

He quickly swings up a leg, catching the guy in the side of the face with his boot and, man it feels good to use his old Jujitsu moves again. The guy is out cold.

But the babies have been whimpering since the guy screamed and Danny can only quiet them so much as he starts to panic himself.

Another guard appears.

_Shoulder shot._

And another.

_Thigh shot._

And another, and another -- this time as a pair -- and one of them actually shoots at them before Steve can reload.

Danny suddenly leaves his side, turning down a hallway to get away, and it's so unlike the detective to dodge a fight like this, but then again, he has two sixteen day old pups wrapped against his chest, and instinct is probably taking over his every thought.

"Danny -- " Steve hisses, running after him, because _no, no, no! You're going the wrong way!_

Bullets are ricocheting down the hall as Steve springs forward to cover Danny as they run toward an enclave in the hallway, and the omega lets out an anxious, low whine. Steve doesn't judge him for it.

His breathing is getting more and more erratic as he starts to gasp and choke on air.

"Danny?" Steve whispers, reaching out, and for a moment it's like the omega's wild blue eyes don't even see him, or like they can see straight through him to the bullet torn hall behind him. Bringing up his shaking hands, Steve grips his mate tightly by the shoulders. "Breathe. Okay? Danny, just breathe!"

The pups start to whimper louder, picking up Danny's scent as he starts to hyperventilate.

And then they start to cry. Really cry.

Steve wrenches his hands onto his head as a burning jolt of pain splits through his skull and it's blinding.

"They're over here!" Yells a voice down the hall, and Steve leans out and nearly gets shot because he can barely see straight. But he still manages to swing up his gun to fire off a few rounds.

In a matter of minutes, he's running dangerously low on ammo, and the shots are coming from multiple angles.

For the first time in a long time, the alpha is afraid.

  
_Truly_ afraid.

  
xxxxxxxxxxx

  
Danny is behind him, panting and hissing, clutching their tiny pups to his chest beneath the sheet. He was trying to hiss, rather; it kept coming out as a whine. One or two fingers keep hold of Steve's shirt, hanging on to him desperately, needing him to protect him.

"I can't fight and hold the babies," he breathes against his broad back.

"Then don't fight," Steve snarls quickly, fanning out his arms to block the guards' view of his omega and pups.

And god damn, the pups.

The babies are mewling these little cries; the sound is tearing his chest apart rib by rib. His mate is trying to comfort them, but Steve knows they can smell Danny's incendiary sweet panic and distress.

It's like they know that it's all about to end, like they know that their short lives may end up a brief wisp in history, and that they'll have existed longer in the womb than out of it if Steve can't protect them. The pups start to really amp up the distress and it's the most innocent, helpless, pitiful little cloying scent meant to attract some empathetic alpha or omega to rescue them, and the scent breaks Steve's heart. He can smell Danny's tears behind him, and he thinks of all the times Danny's been shot and still even then didn't cry.

"Steve," he stutters, "S-Steven listen to me," he swallows thickly. "I-I love you. Alright? I love you and I don't regret anything. Any of this. I'd do it all over ag--"

" _What the_ \-- Danny, stop it. Just stop! Don't talk like that," Steve blurts quickly.

"We have no need for the alpha male -- he's too aggressive!" Barks a voice in the back of the room behind the guards. "We can breed the omega with in vitro."

Danny howls out. "Steven, just say you love me back," Danny begs in a wavering voice.

"Danny, dammit, I love you, but we're not gonna die today," Steven looks around at all of the armed guards, feeling a dizzying rage taking over him. "I'm not gonna let..." And suddenly it's hard to talk. Like words are too evolved for him, and he thinks at first that he's going to go feral.

His chest constricts painfully. Maybe it's a heart attack?

He falters, trying to hold himself up, but it feels unnatural. He needs to be the ground -- where he can spring up and attack with momentum, tear into someone's neck as they fall to the ground.

His skin starts to burn, and the feeling moves over his entire body like a stinging ripple of blazing heat overtaking him. Something is wrong.

 _This isn't normal_ , he thinks, before a popping sensation in his back ignites his spine with pain -- bones grating and shifting under his skin and it hurts too bad to breath

"What's wrong with the alpha? He's having some sort of episode!"

 _Am I dying?_ Steve thinks desperately, looking around at the blinding lights as his pupils seize up into pinpricks. _Is this from the pups' distress? Is it too strong?_

"Just as well, get medical down here to make sure he doesn't die before we can harvest his alphadren and his spunk for breeding," someone grunts above him as he writhes in pain. "Someone come take the little brats away from the bitch!"

He yells out, roars suddenly, and Danny freezes behind him.

In fact, everybody freezes.

A few of guards look at each other while he writhes in pain. A pressure in his joints finally pops and he's clawing at the tiled floor to scramble up to his feet, baring his fangs and--

Someone above him screams. He turns to look up at his mate, whose face is pale with shock. Steve moves closer to his mate in confusion, but Danny screams again, stepping back, and the smell or terror is curling off his skin so thick that Steve can almost taste it.

The guards are screaming now, too, he realizes. _Why?_

Around him, reality has shifted and warped into a tunnel, stretching his focus out into thin wires that curl in around him in the thicket of his senses. He can smell so much more; the fear in the sweat soaked gear of the guards, and the stale desperation of at least fifty other omegas. His hearing was enhanced before, but now it's consuming him -- the rushing currents of the blood in his mate's veins, pumping through around a staccato heart beat. The quick, shallow breathing of the pups and their tiny, trembling mewling whines against Danny's chest

But his eyesight is whittled down to a blinding red glare of the the guards' faces.

All he sees is a threat to his family.

All he sees is _rage_.

xxxxx

Five stories up, just below the surface of the nature reserve, Larry Glenmeyer is making his second cup of coffee for the night. He knows the guards are having a bit of trouble on floor zero with one of the subjects, but he’s already alerted the back-up team with the tranquilizer guns and tasers, and his night should be back to dull and boring, just how he likes it, in a matter of minutes.

His co-worker Dale hasn't looked up from the newspaper in over twenty minutes, and only speaks every hour or so to ask what an x number letter word for something-or-other is. They get along pretty well, and the guy’s got an overzealous baker of a wife that sends Dale to work with zucchini bread or something like that every week, and she even packs a loaf for Larry most of the time.

  
In his small dark room full of black and white video feed screens from cameras around the compound, he flicks his eyes lazily from screen to screen, watching the guards hustle down the halls shoulder to shoulder like a modern day phalanx of black Velcro and Kevlar.

“This rogue little blonde omega doesn't stand a chance,” Dale says suddenly, and Larry is surprised that he’s been glancing up to follow the drama on the screens, but his attention is turned once again to the crossword puzzle. “Feisty little thing, though, he made an escape attempt while he was in labor -- I remember him.”

“Yeah, I remember,” Larry mutters, unwrapping a zucchini bread loaf from its Fort Knox of tin foil. Where the hell does Dale’s wife think he’s gonna take this damn loaf of zucchini bread that it has to be wrapped like this? Mars?

He tosses the foil package on his desk in annoyance, deciding to fiddle with it later, and grabs his coffee to take a sip. He glances up at the screens.

But when he notices what’s on the screen, Larry spews coffee all over the desk (and Dale), choking on the hot liquid and looking up in horror.

“Jesus, Larry!” Dale bursts, slapping his soaked paper down on the desk. But when he looks up, he freezes, just like Larry, staring at the screen. “Is that a fucking _lion?_ ”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What the what?!? Like mother like son?!


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for waiting patiently on that cliffhanger, school has really been picking up these past few weeks and it looks like 2L year is even harder than 1L year so far ;( 
> 
> In case you guys didn't know, AllieMackenzie28 has started a PodFic of this story! She pays amazing attention to detail and has a lot of talent for voicing the characters, particularly the humor lol, so I couldn't be more thrilled about the updates. 
> 
> Check out the PodFic by clicking [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7926205) and scrolling down. There is (I presume) going to be a link posted in each chapter that will take you to the chapter on SoundCloud.

* * *

Danny will never forget the smell of the blood in the air, the metallic coppery scent that’s so strong he can taste it, or the feeling of the pups shivering against his bare chest.

He can hear the heavy padded footfalls of the huge animal beside him.

Staring down at the thing, Danny wants to scream at him to ask if he knew this was possible, if he hid this on purpose. He wants to scream down at its familiar green eyes -- the ones that watch him like he's the only thing that matters in the room. It's endearing, but Danny still wants to snarl at him and yank the whiskers right off that face and ask if his own children are going to do this to him one day.

He feels like he's been dragged by the ankles into a tar pit of insanity, but the most biting, caustic revelation is the fact that he's been willingly treading into this mess for years and hadn't known. His heart is in too deep to leave now. Would it have even made a difference in the beginning, if he’d known? And all of those times they had fought side by side, or fucked rough and angry and dangerous, or screamed at each other in arguments -- how close had this beast been to the surface?

The thought sends his mind reeling like someone has pulled the rug out from underneath it. If he even makes it out of here alive, he's picturing having to install some kind of cat door in his house that could fit a Smart Car through it.

  
But he won't get over it. He won't ever get over this.

Because if you had ever once asked Danny to imagine the most fucked up scenario that could ever be inflicted upon him, it would have fallen astronomically short of what this situation was managing in its degrees of mental scarring. Steve had TURNED, turned right before him, literally, physically- not metaphorically, but physically became something else right in front of him as Danny stood with his back pressed to the wall, desperately clutching their son and daughter to his chest.

Back home, in Jersey, even with the most bizarre cases he had ever worked-- and we are talking, crazy -- he had never seen anything like this. Danny had even once had a handcuffed, female alpha on cocaine kick the window out of his cruiser and escape custody, smeared in human excrement, and run wild down the streets of Jersey into a sleazy bar, inciting the urban equivalent of a greased pig chase with leering drunk men.

That level of crazy he’s used to, and sure he’s heard stories about this kind of thing from the older cops on the force, but no amount of rumors and legends tossed around in the NJPD bullpen could have prepared him for this. But, then again, is it so hard to believe -- given that Danny himself carried his two pups and could sprout inch long fangs and claws that can tear into cement when he’s scared or pissed off?

  
Even so, as the minutes tick by, Danny is forced to attempt to adapt to what is happening in front of him. He will never recover from this mentally, he knows. He will fear the possibility of this ever happening again, and he will always take two steps back every time Steve starts to go feral.

Was it a lack of Omegadren? Was it the pups’ distress? A thousand thoughts accost his brain, but the strongest realization, shining bright in the dark chaos of his mind, is the thought that Steve is saving him.

They have a chance, now.

He watches as the animal -- Steve-- leaps up repeatedly to sink his teeth into the shoulders of the guards. His mate drags them down, screaming, to the ground and viciously shakes them like ragdolls. It reminds Danny of the police dogs he had worked with in the past, and how they would thrash around with the training dummies.

But these aren't the gangly, limp dummies that blankly gazed, unseeing, back at him; these are _humans_.

He doesn't look when Steve bites into one of the guard’s necks, but he can't ignore it when arterial spray spatters onto his face in a warm mist, officially baptizing Danny into this new fucked up life of his.

The omega has to remind himself that these _humans_ had just been attempting to take his pups from him, and eventually would have killed him. But, still, he finds it difficult to watch as the guards scream out in terror. He can smell that at least a few of the guards have urinated on themselves in fear.

The animal suddenly paws a gun his way and Danny finds himself too stiff with shock to bend over and pick it up at first, but he forces himself, reaches down with a shaking hand and picks up the pistol.

He lifts the gun, finding brief comfort in the familiar weight of the weapon in his hand, and turns his body to avoid hurting the pups' ears with the loud bang, firing off a few rounds. But the clip is empty soon, and, . bending low, Danny picks up another weapon the beast slides his way. He starts to fire at anyone appearing in the corridor that might shoot at his alpha, until the animal takes off at a loping run. The guards, screaming in terror, are running desperately in the other direction.

Danny lowers his gun in disbelief.

<< _We found Landsfort!_ >>Chin and Kono yell over Steve's intercom that now lies on the floor beside his shredded clothes and oh the look on their faces when they find out why Steve isn't responding over the radio...

But the animal's ears snap up at the mention of the name, and No, no, oh no, this is going to be bad --

"STEVE!' He screams. "Steve don't kill him, we need him alive!"

But Steve has gone tearing down the hall.

Danny grabs the radio off the floor and catches up with him when he rounds a corner and sees the lion clawing furiously at a door to the stairs. The beast is trying to hook his claws into the door handle and nose it open, trying to get up the stairs to kill Landsfort, and most of Danny wants to let Steve do it.

But this man is going to answer for his crimes, and he's going to rot in jail for it; death would be far too much of a comfort in place of Landsfort’s due penance. Careful of the pups, Danny throws his weight against the door with one shoulder, shoving it closed.

The animal looks up to stare at him, roaring, and Danny's neck aches with the urge to submit to this goddamn _lion_ in a maze of hallways full of bodies and bullet shells. "We need Landsfort alive to testify!"

He doesn't even know if Steve will be able to understand him, but the spark of intelligence in the eyes says he does. The beast roars in frustration and brings up a dinner plate sized paw to scratch the wall a few inches away from Danny to protest, making the omega startle with surprise as the claws scrape into the cement, but he firmly holds his ground.

“I said _no_ ,” Danny mutters, and _Jesus why can't Steve turn back already?_   Danny feels ridiculous talking to him like this.

<< _Landsfort is secure and in handcuffs,_ >> Chin says suddenly over the radio, out of breath after what had probably been a scuffle. << _Taking him topside_. >>

“We’re coming up,” Danny says quickly, backing away from the door.

<< _Good to hear your voice again, brah_ >> the man says, sighing in relief. << _Do you need cover to get up the stairwell?_ >>

Danny glances down at the lion who’s now impatiently shoving a huge paw into his hip, trying to push him toward the stairwell to freedom. “I think I’m good,” he blurts quickly, starting up the cement spiral of stairs with Steve following closely behind.

<< _Then get up here so we can finally get you and the keikis to a real hospital._ >>

“More than happy to oblige, Chin,” Danny replies between breaths, panting as he runs up and out of the sterile, fluorescent, underground hell he’s been confined in for far too long.

“HPD says they’re five minutes out. They found a road on satellite imagery that the employees must’ve been using,” Kono announces over the radio. Danny finds himself more uneasy about anyone seeing his mate like this and accidentally shooting at him than relieved to hear about the impending arrests of everyone at the compound.

As soon as they reach a door to the surface of the jungle, Danny peers out to make sure no one is in sight. He can hear the buzz of the helicopter in a clearing only a few yards away, and knows that the rest of the team will have gathered there.

Danny opens the door and steps out onto the floor of the jungle, gingerly walking with a hand over the pups and one out to keep his balance in the dense foliage and twisted tree roots as the alpha follows him out cautiously. The omega looks uneasily down at Steve, but the beast suddenly sprints away from him toward the forest.

“Steve!” Danny yells out, and the animal stops, pausing and turning to lock those intelligent green eyes on his, and something in the look says to Danny, I can't let them see me like this.

The omega’s shoulders fall and he sighs, nodding, and he watches as the golden tawny animal disappears into the lush jungle. He feels a pang of sadness at their separation.

The pups, having been whimpering against him in protest of being jostled as Danny ran up the stairwell, suddenly howl out. The omega realizes with sinking guilt that the pups have never seen sunlight before, and he considers that it may very well be too bright for their sensitive little eyes.

“Shhh, I’m sorry -- I know, it’s bright isn't it,” Danny whispers as he tries to quiet them, bouncing slightly in a gentle repetitive motion, and he shields the opening in the wrap from the sun as he walks through the trees to the clearing.

The pilot in the waiting helicopter is a familiar, smiling alpha.

But Joe frowns when he notices that Steve isn’t with him, and Danny raises his voice over the helicopter blades to lie, explaining how Steve wanted to wait for HPD and will meet him at home.

Joe gives him a confused look like he's trying to read him for a moment before Chin and Kono appear, catching his attention.

“DANNY!” Kono yells, and she goes to embrace him, but freezes awkwardly, seeing Danny’s lip curling up over his teeth. He’s got one clawed hand over the sheet covered bundle and he looks, for a moment, like he doesn't even recognize Kono.

Chin yanks her backwards by the straps of her tack vest and holds her until the omega blinks, bringing up a hand to hold his head in confusion.

“I’m… I’m sorry, I just -- I don't know what happened…” Danny apologizes, looking down at his claws in horror. He had almost gashed his friend’s hand up.

“It’s been a rough couple of weeks for ya, brah. It’s okay,” Chin says loudly, reaching out slowly to put a hand on Danny’s shoulder. The omega nods, still trying to catch his breath, and tells himself that these people are his friends and not threats, and fuck he needs his mate because he felt safer next to him even when Steve was a giant cat.

Kono surprises him when she gasps loudly, and he looks up.

“Is that --” her face brightens into a surprised expression and she raises her hands up over her mouth as she looks down at the squirming bundle against Danny’s chest.

The omega nods, ducking to step into the bird before pulling back the sheet to reveal their tiny pink faces. He isn't able to take them out in front of her -- that would expose them too much -- but he can at least quell the roar of his own instincts in his head long enough to show them to her.

Chin quickly hands him two sets of earplugs and a headset, and Danny quickly reaches into the makeshift baby wrap to plug the babies’ tiny ears for the ride to the hospital. Chin has patiently been holding out the headset, smiling softly and Danny nods to him in thanks, finally putting on the microphone and silencing earphones. As soon as they are all synced up, he asks where Landsfort is.

“Knocked out and handcuffed in the back of an HPD Hummer on the other side of the facility,” Kono laughs, and Danny forces a grin, hoping that no one in HPD saw a lion creeping toward town.

“Where’s the boss?” Chin asks, and Danny looks down evasively at the pups before lying again.

“He said he’ll meet up with me at home -- wants to see this through personally, I guess.”

“Well this case was pretty personal to him in general,” Chin nods, raising his brows. “Let's get the little ones to a hospital and get them checked out then.”

Danny nods silently, rubbing a hand over the two pups’ tiny backs and feels them nuzzle against his skin.

To their credit, neither Joe, nor Kono, nor Chin stares when a two wet spots start to form in the fabric of the wrap from his reaction to the pups’ scent, and he feels the babies start trying to nurse under the sheet.

_Not here._

He shuts his eyes, taking a deep, measured breath as a blush creeps up his neck to the tips of his ears; this part of his anatomy he would rather keep a secret for a long as possible, and he feels guilty that that desire is at the expense of his pups’ hunger.

He wishes again that Steve were here, so he could hide behind his broad back for a moment and deal with this. The hospital, Danny knows however, is going to be traumatic for the pups and he’s thankful for a brief moment that Steve won't have to endure their scared little cries.

They ask him why he's so quiet on the flight, and he lies again, saying he’s just worn out from the ordeal, but all he can think about is the pair of green eyes that had watched him through the jungle while they had lifted off into the air.

 

* * *

 

  
Doris McGarrett is at home, trying to pup-proof the house as quickly as possible, excited that her grandbabies will be home from the hospital in a matter of hours, when a huge thud on the glass door to the lanai alerts her sensitive Alpha ears.

Half reaching for her gun on reflex -- only to find thin air where her holster and piece would be because, yes, that's right, she's retired now -- Doris walks toward the door to the back deck.

She freezes, lifting her hands up over her mouth in surprise.

There, in the setting sun, a full grown, tawny gold male lion is sitting with a plaintive expression, frustratedly trying to slide open the locked door. It locks eyes with her and lets out the most scared and pitiful noise a beast this size could ever make.

“Oh, _honey_ ,” she tries not to laugh, hiding her smile behind her hand as she opens the door. “Are you stuck?”

Her son creeps into the house on giant, tentative paws, tail flicking tensely, and looks up at her with a desperate expression. And then slowly, his eyes narrow, as if to ask why aren’t you screaming?

Doris leans back against the counter top, exhaling a long breath over parted lips. “I’m sorry, sweetheart,” she says quietly, and she holds up a hand that shifts completely into a lion's paw and back again, the black claws receding into her perfectly normal, clear polish coated nails.

Steve stares, making a noise of disbelief and stomps a front paw on the ground in anger.

His mother falters, shrugging quickly. “It's just that, well, you never _changed_ as a kid like I did -- or as a teen, or in the Navy -- I thought…” She tilts her head. “I thought it had skipped a generation.”

Steve half whines and half growls at her, turning his face to look away stiffly.

Doris’s shoulders fall. "Steve, I didn’t say anything, because I didn't know for sure -- but I did have a feeling this might happen. It's why I flew back home to stay with you when I heard about the pups...” She walks closer to reach out toward his soft brown mane, threading her fingers through the fur and smoothing it away from his face in a comforting motion. “My father said he first changed after I was born. I thought it might be the same for you,” she sighs.

The lion huffs slowly and walks past her to paw open the fridge, sending the ketchup bottle and olive jars rattling in the swinging door as it hits the wall, and Doris walks over to help her son with crossed, patient arms. "Can I fix you something? A couple steaks, or some chicken?"

But when he reaches his huge head in sideways to gingerly grab a cold bottle of beer in his jaws and looks up at her with a sheepish expression, she bursts out laughing, trying to find a bowl to pour the beer into.

 

* * *

 

He doesn't change back until Danny and the pups are back in his nest, and they're safe, and he can smell the calm sweet scent of milk and sleep off the pups.

It happens slowly, while Danny is taking a much needed shower after the hospital, having left Steve to guard over the sleeping pups. He knows the alpha would be poking his huge whiskered face into the shower if they were to wake up and cry.

But instead, Danny is able to finish his shower in peace, wraps a navy blue towel around his waist, and walks back in to find Steve sitting on the floor -- human -- rubbing sleepily at his eyes with the back of his wrist.

“ _Steve_ ,” Danny blurts, and it's almost like the alpha doesn't realize that he's human again until he looks down, blinking.

“Finally,” he sighs, standing up on slightly unsteady legs to stretch and get used to walking upright again. He pulls on a pair of sweatpants from the dresser.

“Are you -- are you okay?” Danny says quickly, walking up to place a hand on his bicep.

The former SEAL nods. “I think so. Come here,” he reaches out silently to pull Danny closer, and leans in to inhale his scent from his neck. They hold each other for a long moment, acclimating to each other's pheromones again, and Steve presses a few kisses against his skin.

A beat passes.

“So are gonna talk about the fact that you turned into a fucking lion?” Danny mutters, muffled against his neck.

Steve snorts under his breath. “Trust me -- I was more surprised than you were.”

“Your mom wasn’t,” Danny whispers flatly. “Said this was the whole reason she flew down. Probably watched you every day for liony traits.”

“Yeah,” Steve sighs, pulling back. “We had a long talk.” The omega raises his brows and the alpha corrects himself; “Well, she had a long talk. I just fucking sat there and listened.”

The omega goes to sit on the bed, running a hand back over his wet hair. “And? What’d she say?”

Steve sits down next to him, resting his elbows on his knees as he turns to look at him in the dimly lit room. “She said our family’s one of the ones that could always do this. Like in the old days. The alphas in our family still a have an excess of alphadren. We always have. She said this is how I bred you outside of a heat. It’s the uh… McGarrett family secret, apparently.”

Danny doesn't seem satisfied with that at all. “I need more answers than that -- I need to know if you're gonna sprout a mane and tail every time you get wigged out now or what?”

Steve purses his lips. “She said it's the pups. The pups caused it and they’re the only thing that can cause it involuntarily. She said she can try to teach me to control it.”

The omega frowns. “Oh don’t tell me she’s one of them too. As if she wasn't scary enough!”

Steve huffs. “Apparently, she was called out of retirement to use the change as a skill set, and that's all she could tell me. Last time I had Joe look her up in the Navy database, it said she’s been working classified L-class black ops. I don't have clearance for that yet, but I uh… I guess I will now.”

“So it’s ‘L’ for lion.” Danny pinches his brow in disbelief.

“I think so. My father and I never knew what the L stood for on her medals and coins,” Steve sighs slowly.

“So some kind of military… Lion. Why couldn't I just have a normal mother in law that makes passive aggressive jabs about how dirty the baseboards are?”

Steve flicks his eyes over to him. “We should be grateful, because I think that’s how she got the tall Asian woman to talk about where the compound was -- the woman was terrified of her. Kept calling her a monster, and I didn't know why. She even destroyed the security tape.”

Danny glances down at the sleeping babies. “And the pups? Are they gonna… ”

Steve purses his lips and lays back, his head near Cooper’s sleeping body, and he turns to trail fingertips over his son’s tiny chest. He’s silent for a long, heavy moment. “We don't know yet.”

“Oh my God, how is this my actual life,” Danny brings a hand up to drag his palm down over his face slowly, letting out a slow breath. “Do we know when we will know?”

Steve shakes his head. “Danny, it’s not really an exact science. Barely anyone can even do this anymore.”

“I thought it was an urban legend,” Danny huffs to himself, glancing down to pull at a thread in the towel.

Steve reaches out to rub the bare skin of his mate’s smooth, warm back, moving his palm up to gently grasp one of his broad shoulders to pull him back down to the bed. “I thought it was at least some kind of native Hawaiian thing, because Hekelea mentioned something about it from his past. My family’s not native.”

“Maybe that has something to do with how your family ended up here,” Danny sighs. “Maybe there’s more of them here.”

“I guess we’ll find out,” Steve says quietly. He pauses suddenly, reaching out to hold the side of Danny’s neck, stretching a thumb up to ghost along the edge of Danny’s jaw. The omega smiles softly under his touch, looking up at him, but his blue eyes look so tired. “Hey. You’re okay, now. You’re safe.”

Danny looks down at the pups that he’s slowly begun to curl his upper body around. “I know. It’s just going to take a while to sink in.”

Steve reaches for Sophie, scooping up her tiny, pink-onesie-covered body with his two huge hands and he gathers her against his neck. She starts to nuzzle her little face into his scent gland, marking her cheeks and forehead.

Steve watches a flash of something well and recede in Danny’s eyes, like an instinctual urge of protectiveness he’s overcome, and the alpha reaches out to grab his mate’s hand to give it a quick squeeze of support.

Danny ducks his face, glancing down at Cooper to pull him closer up under his chin. They look up, realizing that this is one of the first times they've ever seen each other holding one of their own pups, and the realization slowly settles with a gentle weight over both of them.

Steve meets Danny’s gaze; his mate looked gorgeous before, but Steve can't take his eyes off of him now. Fatherhood looks so natural on the omega. He wonders if Danny’s thinking the same thing about him.

When Cooper starts to fidget, whimpering, Steve feels his body tense at the sound. Danny whips his head up and gives him a nervous look. “He’s just hungry. Are you gonna be okay -- ‘cause I don't want you holding one of the babies if you start to lion-out on me, Steven.”

Steve leans his head down and slowly inhales his baby daughter’s scent. It’s calming, slightly, but he still feels the itch under his skin. “I think I only change involuntarily as a response to fear or distress. Because that’s what happened before.”

Danny’s jaw tightens and he gives the alpha a look, as if to say ‘You think?’

“I’m okay. Danny, I'm fine,” Steve tries to assure him. “Like you said -- he’s not scared, he smells hungry.” He waits expectantly, watching Danny and he frowns when the omega starts to roll over to face away from him to feed Cooper. “Babe…” He reaches out to put a huge hand on Danny’s bicep, “You won’t let me see?” He sounds more hurt than he means to.

Twisting his neck slightly, as he holds the baby against the center of his still flat chest, Danny twists his mouth like the thought of Steve watching is irking him. “It's just that they used to try to watch me through the glass at the compound whenever I fed them. It reminds me of that. Being watched.”

Steve exhales slowly, edging closer with Sophie. “But I’m not the compound.”

Danny purses his lips, picking up Cooper -- who has started mouthing around The omega’s chest hungrily -- and placing him on the bed instead. He slowly pulls himself into a sitting position, features set into a deep frown as the alpha pup starts to whine.

Steve looks down at Cooper whimpering on the bed and offers him a hand, but the pup starts trying to suckle on his pinky. “Danny, he’s hungry…”

The omega stands with a sigh and reaches up both hands to hold the sides of his head. “I know, Steven,” Danny says slowly. He folds his arms over his chest, pacing back and forth slightly as Cooper’s whimpers turn into cries.

Steve sets Sophie down next to her brother and stands, starting to walk out of the room. “Well, I’d rather you feed them alone then not feed them,” Steve says shortly on his way out.

He hears the omega huff his name in a sigh but he’s already out in the hall.

He runs into his mother downstairs who’s unloading what has to be thirty pounds of cellophane wrapped raw steaks from a reusable grocery bag into the fridge. She looks up and blinks at the sight of him, then stares disappointedly at the steaks.

“I guess I can freeze these, just in case,” she shrugs, starting to move them to the freezer. “So you turned back, obviously. What finally did it for you?”

Steve ignores her question, storming toward the lanai. “Danny won't let me watch him feed the pups.”

His mother follows out after him. “What do you mean, he won't let you watch him feed -- oh.” She’s silent for a moment, pulling a surprised face. “I didn't know he could even do that.”

“Well, he can.”

Doris purses her lips. “Just give him time. He’s been through a hell of an ordeal.”

Steve throws up his hands, storming out to the beach. “But I’m his mate.”

Doris doesn't follow him, wisely allowing him time to cool off. He sits for an hour under the dark expanse of the pacific night sky, looking at his hands under the pale blue glow of the almost full moon. He tries to change his hand into one of the paws he suffered through dealing with for most of the day, but nothing happens, and his smooth tan skin maintains its human appearance.

He sighs, trying to imagine how he’s going to learn to control this like his mother before reflecting on Doris’s words about Danny. It’s true that Danny has been through a hell of an ordeal, and it’s possible that his mate has PTSD.

 

* * *

 

When the moon has risen into the highest point of its arc through the sky, Steve pads slowly back into the house, hands in the pockets of his sweatpants, and makes his way upstairs. He’s spent too much time away from his mate to endure another minute of being separated.

He doesn't know if he’s walking into another argument, but he enters the electronic pass code to the nest without hesitation and walks in.

Danny is wearing one of his NAVY hoodies and some ratty looking sweatpants, curled up on the bed with his back toward the door.  
As he steps closer, Steve realizes that Danny has fished this particular hoodie out of Steve’s dirty laundry in the bottom of their closet, because the omega smells like him.

Steve sits on the edge of the bed, leaning over Danny’s side to see their two pups lying on their backs, snuggled up against the omega and sleeping soundly.

“Babe?” Danny says groggily, turning his head up to peer at him slowly.

“Hey, Danno,” Steve whispers, leaning to kiss him on the lips softly.

The omega grins up at him sleepily before  
settling back down against his pillow. “I’m sorry for earlier…” he yawns.

Steve shakes his head; “I'm sorry. You have nothing to apologize for, babe, I should've been more understanding…”

Danny smiles softly, patting the bed behind him, and Steve settles up against him, wrapping his arms around him and they drift off to sleep.

At about three in the morning, Steve is startled awake by a pair of tiny faint cries and he is embarrassed to admit that he has no idea what in the hell that noise is for about four whole seconds. He realizes at that moment that the pups are awake and Steve is groggily pulling himself into a sitting position beside his mate who’s already tugging off his hoodie.

With his alpha night vision, he sees Danny hesitate for a moment looking over at him in the darkness. “It’s okay babe,” Steve yawns, turning to face the other direction. “I can just turn around like this, and I can't see a thing. You’re fine.”

But Danny reaches out to put a hand on his shoulder, holding him back down to the bed.

“You don't have to do that,” the omega says softly, and Steve blinks in surprise.

“You sure, buddy?”

Danny nods, laying back down on his back and gently moving the pups until they are propped up on his ribs with their faces on his chest.

Steve stares, frozen in place as the pups eagerly start to mouth around Danny’s chest until they both latch on.

The omega takes a slow breath and Steve can tell he’s fighting with himself on the issue. “That’s amazing,” Steve says suddenly, reaching out slowly to rub each of the pups’ backs as they breathe evenly against Danny’s pecs.

The omega settles his large hands over the babies’ backs and lays back, sighing. Steve lays down and slides in close, inhaling the scent of Danny’s pheromones as they change from the rush of hormones in his system from the action. He smells sweet, calm, protective, and nurturing; it’s the most omega sweet nesting scent Steve has ever picked up from him and he wants to live and die in this scent because it feels like love and home and mate and pups and everything Steve has ever wanted.

“I love you,” the alpha purrs in his ear and Danny whispers it back, pressing his forehead against Steve’s. “You’re amazing. And beautiful.”

When the pups are both done, Danny walks over to the crib in the corner of the room and sets the two babies down inside it. Steve knows they’ll cry in about three hours at six AM, needing to be changed, but until then, he knows how he wants to pass the time.

He waits until Danny has settled back into bed before rolling over to straddle him, edging down the bed and kissing over both the scar and the incision on his lower belly. “I love you so much,” Steve says again, voice low and husky as he begins to move lower down toward his pelvis. “Will you let me show you?”

Danny shuts his eyes, laying back and twisting his fingertips into the sheets. “Show me.”

Steve grins and dips his head to exhale a warm breath on the bulge in Danny’s sweatpants, nuzzling the hardness with his nose and lips and the omega spreads his legs wide, whining out a moan.

He’s over sensitive from their time spent apart, and Steve knows he’s going to enjoy watching him fall apart just as much as Danny is going to enjoy this much needed release. He takes his time, rubbing hands up and over Danny’s inner thighs, nosing the crotch of his sweatpants and the sweet scent of omega arousal. Parting the fabric in the front flap of Danny’s sleep pants, Steve exposes his swollen length to the cooler air of the room before bending low and dipping his tongue into the opening, repeatedly flicking his tongue up the sensitive flesh of his cock with hot kitten licks.

“You tease,” Danny whines, half growling at him and Steve grins wickedly around his tongue as he delves it into the tented pants to drag the tip over the omega’s leaking head. He can smell slick, meaning Danny’s already wet for him, but Steve isn't finished.

“Be patient,” he purrs, tugging down the elastic rim of Danny’s tented sleep pants. Danny’s length springs free and Steve shoves down his hips when the omega bucks upwards, absolutely attacking him with his mouth and taking him down his throat.

Steve can hold his breath for almost a minute. God bless the Navy SEALS.

Danny’s fangs actually pop when he cries out, fucking the hot, wet heat of Steve’s throat and coming straight down into his stomach. Steve pulls off with an obscene pop, sucking him dry as the omega shivers from aftershocks of his orgasm.

Laying back and panting, Danny brings up a hand to wipe at his chest where a few beads of milk have gathered and before he has a chance to be embarrassed, Steve is manhandling him onto his hands and knees and sliding a finger into the the slick crevasse of his ass, fingering him roughly.

The omega moans, thrusting back against him until the alpha hits his O gland, making him shiver and nearly collapse. Holding him up, the alpha leans lower to clench teeth onto the back of his neck, making him fall limp and at his mercy. Purring loudly, the omega rides the rush of euphoric pheromones he feels from submitting so fully to his alpha, knowing their pups are safe in their crib, and finally not worrying about anything but enjoying himself. When he can move again, he thrusts his ass upwards and out, presenting for his huge alpha and waiting for his knot.

Steve reaches into the nightstand, grabbing a condom, and opens the wrapper with the edge of his fang, one handed, and gently scissors Danny open with the other hand, pressing on his O gland every so often to get his omega good and slick.

“Hurry the fuck up,” Danny whines, thrusting back on his hand, and Steve growls low, enjoying the feeling of goosebumps that rise up on Danny’s skin in response.

“I think we’ve got all the pups we can handle,” Steve murmurs pointedly, sliding the condom on.

“For now,” Danny purrs cryptically and Steve has to admit he likes the sound of that, remembering how gorgeous his mate looked growing full with his litter. The thought makes him even harder as he starts to sink into his mate with a lewd, wet sounding noise. He has a hand over Danny’s mouth to make sure he doesn't wake up the pups, and as Steve slides into him, he can feel the omega moaning into his hand.

Steve rocks into his mate, draped over his muscular back, and he reaches a hand around to tweak one of the omega’s nipples.

The omega tenses, muttering a warning under his breath but Steve keeps pulling at the swollen bud until he starts to leak onto Steve’s hand.

The alpha pulls his hand back to taste the sweet fluid on his hand and purrs into Danny’s ear that he’s delicious and the omega blushes a deep pink. Steve shoves the scent marker in his wrist under Danny’s nose, letting him scent how aroused he is by him as he fucks into him. The omega starts to suck on the alpha’s wrist until he’s scent drunk and purring, baring his neck for the alpha to do the same. As Steve rocks into him, starting to knot his mate, he sucks on the scent gland at the base of Danny’s neck and shoulder, feeling the blaze of bliss igniting in his primal brain. He deciphers Danny’s pheromones, cataloging the chemical signals with his tongue.

_Nesting omega._

_Mated._

_New pups._

_Nursing._

_Safe._

_Aroused._

_Proud._

_Loved._

Satisfied that his mate is his, and that he’s healthy, and he’s happy, Steve’s knot swells enough to catch on Danny’s sensitive rim and he comes, biting down on Danny’s bond bite to re-affirm their status as a mated pair. Afterward, he slowly lowers them both to the mattress, resting on their sides, and he wraps an arm around Danny’s chest, pulling him tight against his body.

“You’re mine,” he growls softly, licking over Danny’s swollen bond bite.

“I know,” Danny purrs, ducking his head to kiss the back of Steve’s knuckles before relishing in being held in his huge alpha’s arms. “I'm yours.”

After a moment, the pheromones start to recede into something closer to clarity and Steve leans to press a kiss against the back of his neck. “You knew I was going to save you from that place, right? Did you ever give up hope?”

Danny is silent for a beat.

Steve humms softly against his skin, listening out of his other ear for the pups heartbeats and finally Doris snoring soundly down the hall. He can relax now; everyone is safe. His alpha side is content.

Danny finally turns his face back over his shoulder to peer at the greenish glow  
of his alpha eyes reflecting the moonlight. “I knew you’d find us. I didn’t know you’d change like that, I’ll admit, but I knew you’d save us somehow.”

“How?”

Danny scoffs at him, looking away evasively before shutting his eyes and resting his head on his mate’s bicep, nuzzling into the creamy soft skin. “Because you’re Steve McGarrett.”

 


	23. Chapter Twenty Three (Epilogue)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot thank you guys enough for sticking through with this wild ride to the very end. I think this story -- and all of you readers -- got me through my first year of law school and helped me not lose my mind from the stress. 
> 
> A special thanks to Bankroll1001, BobDog54, and AllieMackenzie28 who helped make sure, in their own awesome ways, that this story got posted through to the end and I didn't lose my mind or the plot in the process!!
> 
> Also, there is now a sequel to this piece if you like this universe: [**"A Burning Sky"**](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8194603)  
> 

* * *

* * *

 

Logan Landsfort, in order to receive a solitary prison sentence away from the general prison population (because no alpha felons would take kindly to the thought of murdered omegas), gives a list of names, a list that’s sitting on the top of the case file on Steve’s desk. The case is almost closed.

_Almost._

The omegas released from the compound into the care of witness protection agree to identify and testify against the participating politicians. Cath has the government officiates blurting out their involvement, desperately and cowardly trying to avoid dying old and alone in prison. It turns out the prisons themselves were even involved; Jerry discovers that the EOS is being used to promote drug sales and -- consequently -- inflate street crime in the state to fill and overcrowd the state prison system. The state board of Law Enforcement had been receiving federal kickbacks from the United States government based on a headcount of prisoners.

Along with a cut of the drug sales and some misallocated pocketing from the federal kickbacks, the highest sitting member of the conspiracy had been living comfortably on an expensive price of property bought dirt cheap on the edge of the Kona Lai nature reserve. It’s the very same auburn haired man Steve recognizes from his hearing before the board with Danny, the one who had insisted Danny be turned in to THRESH. His name, Steve now knows, is Abe Grimly -- the son of Arthur Grimly -- who had attempted to carry on Simon Landsforts greed fueled plan for the triple income he would garner in turn.

Steve lets out a low growl at the thought, and turns his attention to the desk photo of Cooper and Sophie that Danny had snapped the week before with his iPhone. The two pups are on a blue camo print fleece blanket, sleeping in matching navy onesies, and the photo might be so adorable that Cath and Kono spend more time hanging around his desk looking at baby photos than he does now.

Which is all good and fine.

Until he catches them kissing in his office.

Danny can't stop laughing about this story and, really, Steve’s _not_ telling it again if he can help it, because the most embarrassing part is that all he managed to do in response to catching his alpha ex-girlfriend making out with his female beta officer is to blurt out an apology and back out of his own office, slamming the door.

Cath has apparently been Kono’s alpha for more than a year, and though they will be eternally mortified by this story for eons to come, they’re probably happy to stop hiding everything. The arguments in the locker room had been about, ironically, when to come out to their co-workers and friends as mates.

Steve tells them ‘no hard feelings’ about the whole ordeal, but finally gets to use the phrase ‘ _hot mess express_ ’ that Kono taught him to describe her flustered expression as the two of them bolt out of his office a minute later, both blushing furiously and disheveled looking.

Chin watches the entire fiasco go down and calmly sips on his green tea, shaking his head fondly, and maybe this guy already knew, Steve thinks later, or maybe Chin really is in a continuous state of zen like Danny claims.

As Danny is going over the list of omegas freed from the compound, he’s excited to find a familiar name on one of the pages -- Alexei Taylor -- and Steve gives the man a call, reaching out to discover that the omega is recovering well, all things considered. Steve lets him know that the team is here for him if there’s anything he needs, and hints gently that as soon as he’s up and running in his office again, he has two new little patients to meet that will need a referral to a pediatrician soon.

Steve and Danny have received two book offers and a movie deal since the media found out about the political scandal and the compound, but the alpha always responds with the same well-tailored statement that ‘they’re going to focus on their new family and enjoy this new stage of their lives with a request for respect toward their privacy.’

The governor helped him come up with that one as they went over the terms of Danny and Steve’s co-paternity leave, which is due to begin as soon as the case is officially closed.

For now, Danny is in the office for a few hours every day, writing a sworn  
affidavit of his testimony for the case, and the pups are at home with their grandma. Steve is definitely not worried about the pups’ security -- even with the recent bout of media attention -- considering that the woman rocking them to sleep is a member of the black ops L-class.

Steve has applied for the L-class security clearance with Doris’s referral and a few brief lessons on how to control his new skill set.

He calls her ‘Mom’ now, again, whenever he calls home to check on his pups, and if she notices she doesn't say anything. But he’s pretty sure she does notice, regardless, because he hears the smile in her voice, and she laughs a lot more these days than he ever remembers -- especially during the first few ‘lessons’ when he keeps slamming face first into the glass door of the lanai. He is the world’s most clumsy and oblivious apex predator, trying to get used to seeing things in black and white and the new sensation that is vision based on movement.

Danny holds an ice pack on the swollen, velvety bridge of his nose for a few minutes after his third collision with the glass as Steve whine-growls in frustration. This last tantrum prompts Doris to fix a huge black X on the glass at lion face-level with some electrical tape.

The change luckily doesn't happen involuntarily again until the pups are six months old. It happens when a large, mean, mange-ridden stray dog at the park comes snarling up to Sophie one day, after her melting orange popsicle of all things.

Danny’s fangs and claws are popped already as he yells “ _Steven!_ ” from the other side of the picnic table, pointing at the dog and preparing to reach for his holstered gun, but Steve shifts almost instantly before his eyes.

This dog has obviously never seen a predator of this size up close, and has certainly never been at the center of its deadly and dangerous attention; after one roar, it goes howling across the park whining, with its tail between its legs.

The babies both stare in wonder at the huge cat, reaching out curiously toward his mane when Steve turns to check on both of the pups. Danny is panting with a hand on his chest, watching in nervous relief as the lion nuzzles the two pups gently, licking their downy hair with his sandpaper tongue until the alpha is satisfied that they’re okay, and they’re fine, and they’re good.

“Well,” Danny mutters, “Did you and Doris ever get ‘changing back quickly’ down pat or do I need to call Chin to bring the department van up here?”

The lion gives him a look and starts to pace around the table in frustration.

“I’d say we’ve got about ten minutes before someone sees you and we make the evening news,” Danny sighs, reaching out to scratch behind Steve’s ears. “Oh don’t mind me and my gigantic _lion_ , we’re just having a picnic. Nothing to see here.”

Steve brings up a huge paw and swats at Danny’s hip before hiding under the picnic table. But his tail is sticking out, and really, Danny thinks, there are ways to hide a lion and this is not one of them.

But after an hour, when Steve is almost asleep in the cool shade of the table, he changes back -- grateful and clumsy on his hands and knees as he awkwardly climbs out from under the table.

The pups are delighted with this trickery, laughing and squealing happily as Danny quickly tosses the SEAL his board shorts and a tee shirt from the trunk of his car.  
  
“Well, I guess that still happens then,” Steve mumbles, standing up and finally clothed again.

Danny purses his lips. “We’re gonna have to learn to control this better, Steven, or the first time one the pups gets punched on the playground we’re gonna have a 650 pound _problem_.”

Steve nods. He’s just received an interview request for his L-Class clearance application, so hopefully, he’ll have some new associates to talk to about this. Maybe they’ll be able to teach him some tips on controlling the involuntary stuff.

Danny has finally found a support group of other male omegas, and it's filled a shapeless void in his heart somehow, one that Danny never realized was there, and the group meets at a sports bar downtown once a month and has a good time trading stories. Steve notices one day -- after a few of these meetings -- that Danny’s driver’s license is renewed, and he has finally corrected his subgender, no longer trying to hide the fact that he’s an omega. With THRESH gone, the state designs a new facility, one that is genuinely interested in the health and well-being of omegas, and to maintain that its efforts remain noble, they even ask Danny to oversee the facility as its director.

Danny humbly declines the offer, but refers them to a different omega that will probably do an even better job than he could -- Dr. Alexei Taylor.

A year later, one year to the day that Five-O and HPD raided the compound and discovered hundreds of missing persons, a news special runs on the story in Hawaii. The host of the special is none other than Hawaii Evening News’ Nellie Darnell, who has finally graduated from the university, earning special honors for her involvement in the exposure of the crooked political figureheads that reformed omega healthcare and saved hundreds of lives.

The last change to be made -- the one that somehow brings closure to Steve and Danny for the hardships they endured together and apart -- is the land of Northamer Farm, now made into Northamer Park, with a memorial, a bronze apple tree, made to honor the families of the victims of the Landsfort compound. The state first offered the land back to Marvin and Michelle Northamer as an apology for the deceitful actions that had originally lead to their displacement decades ago, but the two are now happily living in New York City, and Louis Northamer, is in prison awaiting sentencing for his long-term abuse of Michelle. Michelle sends Danny and Steve a letter from New York on the anniversary of their hearing at the department of law enforcement -- and a few adorable baby photos reveal that she has named her son Steven Daniel Northamer in their honor.

Danny still has dreams about the compound, and sometimes Steve will catch him standing silently in the moonlight over the pups’ new toddler sized beds, watching them sleep when the dreams get the best of him. But Steve, when this happens, will kiss him gently on the neck and wrap his long arms around him, patiently waiting for the omega to talk about what’s on his mind, and that usually puts Danny at ease.

One night, what’s on Danny’s mind isn't what Steve expects. “You think we should ever tell them about THRESH and the compound? About the case?” the omega asks softly.

Steve shuts his eyes, thinking for a moment. “I’m sure one day they’re going to have to hear about it. About all of it. Maybe as a bedtime story at first.”

“Be a _hell_ of a story,” Danny whispers, shutting his eyes -- just to rest them, he tells himself.

The alpha huffs a gentle laugh against his skin. “I don't even know where I’d start.”

“Well…” Danny adjusts himself until his head is on Steve’s broad chest; “With a closeted omega, a late-blooming lion, and a burning orchard.”

And _yeah,_ Steve thinks, dozing off in his nest with his mate and pups; _yeah, that sounds about right._

* * *

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think of this crazy tale, and don't forget to check out the new SEQUEL to A Burning Orchard:  
> [ **"A Burning Sky"**](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8194603)  
>  Excuse me while I go pop this obscenely cheap pink champagne.
> 
> -DNG

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [A Burning Orchard [Podfic]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7926205) by [Alliemackenzie28](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alliemackenzie28/pseuds/Alliemackenzie28), [DorisNancyGrey](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DorisNancyGrey/pseuds/DorisNancyGrey)




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